The Chosen
by Ambrant Arandel
Summary: NegixNodoka, YuexKotaro. This is an alternate scenario of what happens over the summer break when Negi's grandfather intercedes in his grandson's love life. This is NOT a sequel to 'Child of Mine'. Complete.
1. Camping

**A/N: It's been a while, but I'm back in action. I've gotten enough of this story done to start posting after a long absence. Hopefully, I'll have it finished before posting catches up to me. Anyway, I hope you all like it.**

**The Chosen**

**Chapter 1) Camping**

"Are we there yet?" Misora whined from somewhere in the back of the group.

"We'll be there soon enough." Kaede reassured her from the head of the small column of intrepid (or in some cases not so intrepid) campers. The school year was nearly over and Negi was getting ready to do some serious training in the mountains before heading off to Wales. He had asked Kaede if he could tag along for a weekend, and had intended to invite Ku Fei.

Negi sighed as he remembered the entire debacle. The next thing he knew the girls had heard about it and seeing as it sounded too much like a date, the next thing he knew it was going to be a group outing. Negi looked back at the rest of his 'magic class'.

Nodoka and Yue were walking along with a cooler between them behind Konoka and Asuna, all of whom had back packs carrying various things they would need for their weekend training session.

Setsuna followed after the four, keeping a watchful eye on her beloved Ojou-sama. Ku Fei was with her and had probably the smallest pack of the lot of them, Negi included. She had apparently come here before to train with Kaede and apparently didn't feel the need to pack half her wardrobe.

Misora brought up the rear, and didn't look overly thrilled to be in attendance, but Konoka and Yue had convinced her to come and train more in magic. Occasionally, she would be joined by Kotaro who would suddenly appear next to her to remind everyone that he was alive before darting off into the wilderness. _Probably off chasing rabbits_, Negi thought to himself.

Negi turned back to watching Kaede's back as they hiked towards her training grounds. It was hurting his neck a little keeping his head raised all the time, as unfortunately (?) Kaede's bottom was nearly eye level as they walked up the small incline into the mountains.

It wasn't that Kaede didn't have a pleasant bottom to look at, far from it, it was just Negi thought it would be inappropriate to stare at one of his students. For the past while now, against his greatest efforts, puberty was finally beginning to catch up to the boy. He had begun to… notice… the girls in his class that he hadn't before and it made him uncomfortable when he thought about it for too long.

Asuna at least was thankful that he'd stopped crawling into her bed at night for the past few days, but if she knew the rather embarrassing reason she'd most likely clobber the boy mage and he'd find himself with new roommates.

Negi sighed and lifted his eyes to Kaede's back again for the tenth time since they'd begun hiking. He kept telling himself that his neck was getting tired when he suddenly found himself staring at the ninja's posterior… her soft, shapely, and yet well toned posterior.

"What was that?" Misora said in alarm.

"Where?" Negi said turning his head to see what was the matter.

Unfortunately, (?) Kaede had stopped walking, and since Negi had not he came cheek to cheek with the soft warm pillow that was Kaede's backside. This was actually a first for Negi. Usually he'd ended up face first into one of the girl's breasts (or worse) by now. He looked up at the smiling girl only long enough to mutter an embarrassed apology before Asuna hauled him up by his collar with an irritated growl.

"Sorry about that, it's just me." Kotaro said emerging from the bushes. He held aloft a rather large rabbit that was struggling to escape. "I caught dinner."

Kotaro nearly lost his footing from the smack he got from Konoka. "Bad boy, no biting bunnies!" Konoka admonished.

"Just because I'm a dog demon does NOT mean you can talk to me like I'm your poodle." Kotaro growled back.

Negi glanced over at Setsuna, as did Kotaro, and with one rather pointed glare he quickly calmed himself. "I mean, it's not like I'd really bite him." Kotaro quickly said with a forced chuckle.

Negi didn't relax until he saw Setsuna take her hand off her hilt. Setsuna could be rather protective when it came to Konoka. He'd have to make certain that if it should ever become necessary to train Konoka in combat magic that she was NOWHERE around at the time.

Everyone finally turned and finished the rest of the hike in silence, except for Misora who asked about their estimated time of arrival about five more times. Negi counted about thirty since the start of the trip.

The campsite next to the waterfall was much as Negi remembered it the night he had first come here and happened upon Kaede training by accident. He looked around at the little area fondly.

"Are you blushing sensei?" Nodoka asked.

"Oh, no, just a little hot from all the hiking." Negi said quickly tearing his eyes away from the large drum that served as an outdoor bath.

Everyone pitched in and set up camp, except of course for Kotaro. Negi grumbled as he set about setting up _their_ tent alone, since Kotaro claimed he was going to sleep up a tree somewhere. _I hope it rains on him._ Negi thought sourly.

Once everyone was settled, Ku Fei wandered over and after helping Negi finish his tent, dragged him off the bank of the river. "Since you already hot, is time for training."

* * *

Nodoka watched as Negi trained with Ku Fei. She was a little jealous of the martial artist as she moved through several advanced dai-hakkyoku. It was a part of Negi's life she really couldn't take part in. She wasn't much of a fighter after all. She watched as Ku Fei would stop to reposition Negi's body when he moved improperly. She felt a little pang of jealousy as Ku Fei reached around Negi from behind to move both of his arms through the proper motions.

Nodoka daydreamed for a moment of Negi showing her how to move properly, with his arms wrapping around her so she would be standing properly. Her back against his chest, she could practically feel his hot breath on her neck.

That hot breath suddenly turned cold as ice, which is what in fact it turned out to be as Yue touched her grape and tomato flavored pop to her neck. Nodoka yelped and turned on her friend.

"I said; do you want something to drink Nodoka?" Yue said looking at the girl. She then looked over her shoulder at Negi. "You were spacing out again."

"Sorry, no; not right now." Nodoka said sheepishly. She leaned against the log as Yue joined her for a little fond daydreaming of her own. If only she could share in Negi's experience…

Nodoka suddenly got an idea and pulled out her diary. Maybe it would be enough watching his thoughts, and to know what he was thinking about as he concentrated on his battle. Besides, if she could get good at determining combat strategies with her book she could be of better use to Negi in battle.

"Adeat." Nodoka whispered as her card transformed into a book. She watched as she concentrated on her sensei and watched his thoughts scroll across her book.

"Now is time for us to practice some of the styles you learn with sparring!" Ku Fei practically squealed. There was little that excited the girl more than fighting, and little that excited boys more than _watching_ her fight.

Nodoka looked down to see what Negi was thinking as the two settled into their fighting stances. She was pleased to find that he was totally focused on the combat and not on the girl he was fighting, aside from seeing her as his opponent.

"Begin!" Ku Fei shouted as she rushed at Negi.

Negi was barely able to jump in time as Ku Fei swept low with a kick meant to take the boy off his feet. _Barely got up in time,_ Negi thought quickly_, I knew she was holding out on her speed up until now._

Negi flipped over in mid air to bring his feet down behind the Chinese girl and quickly back flipped as she continued her spin to try to catch him when he landed. _She's faster this time, what's she going to do next?_

Ku Fei brought her arms up with her palms downward and her hands sloping down in front of her as well. She launched forward with a series of jabs as Negi swept his arms in arcs to deflect the blows away from his body. _She's attacking with 'Praying Mantis Style', trying to strike my pressure points. If she catches me she'll cripple my arms. I'll have to counter with Wing Chun._

Ku Fei relentless pushed Negi backward suddenly changing her arm movements from precise jabs to sweeping movements as her fingers spread out and curled up. Negi had to roll to avoid her initial assault and then began to counter. _Ha, 'Eagle Claw Style', it's good but no match for Lau Gar._

Nodoka smiled as she watched Negi begin to press Ku Fei back. The young student seemed hard pressed against Negi, but she hadn't stopped smiling through the entire fight. Negi pressed his advantage, and soon the girl was sweating heavily.

Just reading the thoughts of her beloved Negi started making Nodoka thirsty so she got up and walked back to the cooler behind them. Most of the drinks were Yue's but she'd packed some nice safe apple juice just in case. She let her book float in front of her so she could continue reading while she bent over to retrieve the drink carton.

_So now she's using 'White Crane', I better slip into Tai Chi Chuan… Man, Nodoka has a really cute looking…_

"ACK!" Negi shouted from behind Nodoka as she quickly stood back up straight. She turned to see the boy flattened on the ground gasping for air from the chest punch he'd taken from Ku Fei.

"You do good, apprentice, but you still lose focus. You have to concentrate, on battle or you lose." Ku Fei admonished the mage.

Nodoka quickly turned and hoped that he hadn't noticed her watching. She quickly stashed her book and went back to sit next to Yue as if she hadn't been paying attention. "Is Negi sensei okay?"

"Yeah, he just looked over this way for a moment and Ku Fei nailed him." Yue said seriously. "I think we might be distracting him, let's go check on dinner."

Nodoka nodded and the two friends quickly left the log to go find Konoka and Misora tending the food provisions they'd brought with them. Kotaro was off training with Kaede, while Asuna and Setsuna worked on swordplay. For some reason Nodoka couldn't help but smile, if Negi was that easily distracted she'd have to be careful not to disturb his training.

The four girls gathered around the campfire and Konoka pulled out her wand. "Practi Bigi Naru Ardescat!"

"You're getting much better with that." Yue complimented their friend.

"Yes, since I don't have to worry about anyone catching me, I can practice in my room all I want." Konoka said waving her practice wand around. "So Misora-chan, how far along are you in your studies?"

"Not much further than you are." Misora said glumly. "The only reason I'm even studying magic is to make my mother happy."

"Is your mother a mage?" Yue asked.

"Yes, but she isn't very powerful. My grandfather was average, but kaa-san doesn't have his potency. I'm little better." Misora confessed. "Truth be known, I'd just as soon forget the whole business. If Negi were actually teaching magic to our class, I'd be in with the Baka Rangers, no offense Yue."

"None taken, studying bores me. When it comes to magic though, I can't seem to get enough." Yue confided.

"Yeah, I can tell you've got more magic potential than I do." Misora admitted.

"Yes, but not as much as Konoka or Nodoka." Yue said sadly.

"How do you know how much magic I'm capable of?" Nodoka asked.

"Well, using my artifact as a study guide I started learning how to gauge an opponent's magical energy. It's a pretty basic skill for a mage, and you and Konoka were handy test subjects." Yue explained.

"That and I bet you were _dying_ to know too weren't you." Misora accused the Baka Leader.

"Well, the thought _did_ cross my mind." Yue admitted.

"It doesn't matter though, Yue might not have my magical storage capacity, but she's already a better mage than I am." Konoka said smiling at her friend.

"I wish _I'd_ gotten your artifact." Misora complained. "My running shoes only help me get out of danger by running away; yours actually allows you to come up with solutions."

"Sometimes." Yue said darkly. "I still have quite a few problems that no artifact will fix."

Nodoka didn't say anything, but she knew Yue was talking about Negi. Yue loved Negi just like she did. Nodoka really didn't want to think about it, but at some point the situation was going to have to be addressed. Negi was going to have to choose someone eventually. In the back of her mind Nodoka realized that he might one day grow up and find someone outside of their class, but the idea was remote compared to all the girls gunning for him right now.

The four girls sat around the fire roasting marshmallows waiting for the more combat oriented members of their group to return. Yue was impressing them with her ability to roast marshmallows without a stick by levitating them through the fire when the rest of their small company rejoined them.

"Something smells good." Kotaro ventured.

"Have a hot dog." Konoka said tossing the package to him. "No offense meant."

Everyone chuckled and settled in as the sun began to set. Tomorrow was going to be their full day of training. Negi was going to teach the girls magic in the morning and train a little in the afternoon before everyone broke camp and headed back to the dorms in the evening.

It didn't take long for everyone to get rather comfortable. Finally it was Kotaro that stretched. "I think I'll go dip in the river."

"It might be rather cold, why don't you use the outdoor bath." Kaede suggested.

"Whatever, that sounds good too." Kotaro said shrugging.

"Here, I'll set the fire for you." Kaede said getting up.

The two started to head off to the bath when Negi spoke up. "Uh, Kotaro…"

"Yeah, what?" Kotaro answered back gruffly.

"Actually, never mind, it was stupid." Negi said grinning.

Nodoka shrugged and went to her tent to change into some pajamas. She ruffled around in her pack for a moment and then came back out to the fire. "Hey Yue, where's my pajamas."

"I laid them on the… bed." Yue said slapping her forehead. "I'm sorry Nodoka. I forgot to tell you that I washed them."

"I have nothing to sleep in." Nodoka said forlornly.

Nodoka turned to see Asuna pounding on Negi's chest as he had apparently had his drink to go down his windpipe. The boy valiantly gasped for air as Asuna looked like she was beating him.

"That's okay Honya-chan, I have a spare T-shirt you can wear to sleep in." Asuna said finally relaxing after making sure that Negi was either going to survive or had been sufficiently beaten, Nodoka wasn't really sure which.

"You actually brought extra clothes?" Konoka asked.

"Well you know how accidents happen." Asuna said jabbing her thumb in Negi's direction.

Everyone laughed. Then out of the night a giggle and a panicked howl could be heard. "Yipes woman, are you NUTS?"

Everyone turned as Kotaro came running back into camp. "That crazy ninja tried to climb into the bath with me."

Everyone stood there staring at Kotaro. Negi was red faced from the effort of holding in the laugh. All the girls just sat there and stared. Then their eyes trailed downward.

"What?" Kotaro asked in confusion.

Yue merely cleared her throat and pointed down. Kotaro looked down and noticed for the first time that he was still naked.

"Fine, be that way. Is this better?" Kotaro said in a huff before shifting into the form of a dog. The canine looked at the group balefully before walking into the middle of the camp and shaking himself dry on everyone. Kotaro never saw the harisen coming.

"You can sleep in the woods tonight then you animal!" Asuna cried irately as she sent Kotaro sailing into the night.

Things calmed down after that, and Nodoka went and changed into the T-shirt that Asuna had. It was much longer on her, and could easily pass for a nightshirt. Nodoka looked down; you could see a lot of her thigh under the shirt, but nothing else. Satisfied, she headed back to her tent as the rest of the party was breaking up and heading off to bed expecting an early start. She was a little disappointed to find Negi had already turned in for the night.

Sighing Nodoka retreated to the safety of the tent she was sharing with Yue. Inside Yue was also ready for bed. The two of them had decided to split their load. Yue had carried their tent and Nodoka had carried the oversized sleeping bag that they would be sharing.

"Sorry about your pajamas, Nodoka." Yue said again.

"It's okay; it's supposed to be a warm night." Nodoka said happily. The two of them sat down and talked for a while, and Yue finished off one of her weird drinks. They'd lost track of time until Nodoka yawned.

"I guess we should try to get some sleep." Yue said seriously. "It'll be hard to recite spells if we're yawning tomorrow."

Nodoka nodded, picked up her lantern, and then crawled for the tent entrance. Her bladder was reminding her that there were a few things she needed to take care of before sleeping. "I'll be back. I just need to go to the bathroom first."

Yue nodded and got into their sleeping bag. "Just don't wake me when you come to bed."

"Just try to make sure you don't wet the sleeping bag later when you have to go yourself from all the stuff you drank." Nodoka shot back playfully.

Yue grunted and Nodoka slipped off into the night to relieve herself. She was careful not to wander very far, and once she found a nice secluded spot finished her business before heading back for camp. She had just reached the edge of the light cast by their dying fire when she encountered Negi.

He was wearing his pajamas and was halfway between his tent and Asuna's, which Asuna was currently sharing with Misora. Nodoka stopped as he turned to her with his eyes glazed over and heavy from sleep.

"One-chan." Negi said mumbling as he staggered over to Nodoka. He practically collapsed into her arms.

Nodoka held him there a moment, trying to calm herself as she looked down at the beautiful boy that currently had his head against her chest snoring blissfully. _He's sleepwalking._ Nodoka thought to herself in amazement.

Nodoka remembered how Negi had a tendency to wander into Asuna's bed at night. Nodoka looked jealously at the tent the bigger girl occupied. If only Negi would wander into her bed with her…

It suddenly struck Nodoka what was happening. She was wearing Asuna's shirt. Negi said that Asuna smelled like his cousin/sister and that was why he always crawled into bed with her. Nodoka looked down at the boy in her arms and then looked at his tent blushing. Yue would be asleep by now and Kotaro was sleeping in the forest. Negi's tent was right in front of her and she really should put him to bed.

She led the boy back to his tent. In his dream-like trance he followed and didn't protest. Nodoka opened the flap for him and he crawled into the tent and into his sleeping bag. Unlike the one she had brought for her and Yue, this one was for only one person and Kotaro's sleeping bag was nowhere to be seen. All she had to do was get in there and crawl in next to the boy of her dreams and he'd welcome her in. She could sleep in his arms close to him all night long and no one would stop them.

Nodoka blushed with indecision wondering whether to take the next step in her love for the Negi when providence decided for her and the heavens opened up.

Nodoka barely had time to get inside Negi's tent before she got drenched. She looked out the tent flap and sat the lantern down. Negi shivered in his sleeping bag as a cold wet wind blew in through the open tent.

"One-chan, I'm cold." The boy innocently complained.

That was the last draw. Nodoka couldn't stop herself anymore. She was in his tent, he was cute, he was cold, he was cute, she couldn't get back to her own tent, he was cute, there was only one sleeping bag, he was cute, and they probably weren't going to be disturbed before morning, it was like having an engraved invitation. Oh yes, and he was cute too.

Nodoka crawled into the sleeping bag with him and zipped it. She was now so close to Negi she could feel his body against hers. Negi snuggled close to her warm body and Nodoka fought off the urge to faint. She was here, she was doing it, and she loved every minute of it. Yue might be a little jealous tomorrow, but she'd be doing the exact same thing if given the same circumstances so Nodoka said a thankful prayer that fortune had favored her this night and settled in next to her love to sleep for the night. As she began to drift off to sleep she reached over and turned out the lantern light.

* * *

"Nodoka would have to say something like that." Yue said rolling out of the sleeping bag. She dashed from the tent shortly after Nodoka left to find her own spot to pee. She looked around nearly wetting herself before she found a nice place in the bushes.

Relief came swiftly to the girl as she emptied herself of the day's drinking binge. It never ceased to amaze her at how large her bladder must be. Yue straightened and was about to head back to camp when there was a rustling in the bushes behind her. Yue's heart leapt into her throat. She'd left her wand in the tent and it was her only real defense.

Finally, a black haired boy popped his head out of the bushes. "Hey squirt, are you finished yet?"

"Kotaro, what are you doing following me out here? Were you watching me go to the bathroom you pervert?" Yue asked hotly. She let her anger cover her embarrassment. With luck Kotaro would think she was red in the face from being furious instead of flustered.

"No, I didn't follow you." Kotaro shot back. "I was already here. You nearly stumbled on where I was trying to sleep."

"Then how did you know I was using the bathroom?" Yue pressed.

"Well, I _do_ have ears. What did you drink anyway? It sounded like someone left a faucet running." Kotaro said with a grin. "Besides with my sense of smell, I could probably tell you what you'd been drinking all day."

Yue was definitely blushing now. She was also angrier than ever. Kotaro had that effect on her. "Well, I'm sorry I disturbed you."

"Yue, wait. It isn't just that." Kotaro said quickly.

"What, you want to sniff my rear next?" Yue shot back hotly.

"Actually, I was hoping you'd let me have part of you pajamas." Kotaro said with a pleading look.

"WHAT?" Yue asked incredulously.

"I'm naked remember?" Kotaro said pointing down at the bush. "That shrew Asuna knocked me out here without any clothes. Could I wear your pajama bottoms until we get back to camp?"

Yue looked back at the boy and grimaced. It wasn't in her nature to leave people who needed help, but this time she was SORELY tempted. The loud mouth boy had been a thorn in her side for a long while now. Finally she relented. She told herself it was because she couldn't stand to see a dumb animal suffer.

"Fine, here." Nodoka said stripping off her pajama pants and tossing them over into the bush. She stood there shivering in nothing but her top and panties for a moment before Kotaro stepped out in her clothes.

"This is humiliating." Kotaro said looking down at the kittens on her pajama bottoms.

"Tell me about it." Yue said trying to pull her shirt down to cover her underwear. "Let's get you back to camp so I can get my clothes back and get to bed."

The two of them started back toward camp when Kotaro started to run. "We better hurry!"

"Why?" Yue asked as her answer came in the form of a raindrop that fell on her nose. The girl raced to keep up with Kotaro and she was just about back to camp when her eyes caught sight of Nodoka's lantern.

Yue stopped a short distance from camp as she saw Nodoka leading Negi back toward his tent. She then watched as Nodoka ducked into the tent just as the rain hit. Yue suddenly felt detached from everything around her. It was raining now and she was briefly aware of Kotaro pulling on her arm. She watched the silhouette of Nodoka as she opened the sleeping bag and crawled in next to Negi and turned out the light. Yue felt a sharp pain in her chest, but part of her was still cheering on her friend.

"You go girl." Yue said to herself before realizing that she and Kotaro were getting soaked to the bone. The two of them finished running back toward the camp and Yue ducked into her tent followed by Kotaro.

"Great, just great, I'm soaked to the bone and now that girlfriend of Negi's is taking up my spot in his tent!" Kotaro groused.

_My sentiments exactly._ Yue thought darkly. "So did you have a sleeping bag in there Kotaro?"

"No, I figured I'd sleep in the woods tonight, but I hadn't expected rain. Negi offered to share his tent, but I'm pretty sure he only had the one sleeping bag. Hey, why are you suddenly looking green?"

"No reason." Yue lied. "It's probably just the weather."

Yue looked down at her soaked shirt and underwear and realized she didn't have any spare sleeping clothes. Then she looked at Kotaro. "Your clothes are all in Negi's tent aren't they."

Kotaro nodded glumly. Yue only sighed. She was going to have to sleep without any…

Yue looked back at Kotaro who was looking at her worriedly. Apparently similar things were running through his mind. He then went to looking out at the rain.

"Just turn around." Yue said in defeat.

Kotaro obediently turned his back while Yue stripped. She then undid her hair and let it fall in a sheet down her back. She dried off with her only towel and slipped into the sleeping bag. She then rolled over and turned her back to Kotaro. "If you try anything funny I'll tell Kaede and she'll turn you into a fur coat."

"I can turn into a dog if it makes you feel better." Kotaro offered.

"No thanks; wet boy is bad enough; I'd hate to wake up smelling like wet dog." Yue said over her shoulder. "Dry off with that towel before you come to bed."

Yue heard the rustle of wet fabric sliding off Kotaro and memories of seeing him naked started popping up unbidden into her mind. He was the first boy she'd ever seen naked, and for some reason the memory didn't want to be dislodged. Yue began wondering what Negi would look like and kept mentally comparing the two.

Yue felt Kotaro slip into the sleeping bag beside her and turn the other way. "Thanks squirt." Kotaro said seriously.

"Don't mention it, moron." Yue said flatly back to him. "And I'm serious, really, don't mention it ever again."

**A/N: I'm going to try keeping up my former schedule that I established with 'Child of Mine' in updating this story weekly. It should give me a few weeks to finish the ending and get it beta read before the posting catches up to me. Stay tuned…**


	2. Awakening

**A/N: My next chapter, hooray! Anyway, I failed to mention something that I'm doing with this story. I'm hiding Easter eggs in it. Hidden in the dialogue are notable lines from television and movies. See if you can spot some…**

**Chapter 2) Awakening**

Nodoka didn't want to move. It was a cold morning and the warmth of the boy next to her was too welcoming to allow her to do anything but lay there holding him close. It was a dream come true.

Nodoka had spent the night in the arms of the boy she loved so dearly. He was asleep now mostly on top of her and he had his head nestled innocently against her chest. Nodoka almost felt maternal toward the boy. She wondered if this is what it was like for Asuna. Asuna had proclaimed loudly, quickly, and often, that the boy wasn't a welcome visitor in her bed. She also tended to have more of a protective love for the boy than anything romantic.

If she was privy to moments like these Nodoka could see why. Asleep he looked so small and innocent. He hardly seemed the heroic, brilliant mage that had stolen away her heart. He clung to her and she wrapped her arms around him hoping the moment would never end. It was little wonder then that lady luck went from benevolent mistress to two timing whore.

"NEGI, WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HONYA-CHAN!!" Asuna screamed, looking down at the two of them from the open tent flap.

Nodoka felt Negi suddenly being pulled from her arms and the two instinctively clung to each other as Asuna pulled Negi out of the tent by his hair, which brought Nodoka and the sleeping bag along for the ride.

Realizing Negi's distress, Nodoka quickly released the poor boy as Asuna held the poor boy up by his scalp. He dangled there with a mixed look of bewilderment and terror. Nodoka had to do something. "Um, Asuna…"

"How dare you take advantage of Honya-chan like that you pint-sized pervert!" Asuna bellowed at the boy shaking him by his hair.

"Um, Asuna…" Nodoka tried more urgently. Negi was in obvious pain and hadn't done anything. It was all her fault and Nodoka could feel the guilt and anger building up at his unjust treatment.

"I ought to beat you to within an inch of your life! You've been around that perverted ermine so long that…" Asuna continued to rant.

"KNOCK IT OFF ASUNA!" Nodoka yelled. The name seemed to echo through the mountain valley where they were camped. Nodoka was vaguely aware of others peeking out of their tents to see what was going on.

Asuna slowly turned her angry and dangerous face to look squarely at Nodoka. Nodoka knew she had to look ridiculous standing there with her fists clenched and her arms ram-rod straight at her sides as she faced the far more combative girl. She wasn't going to let Negi be hurt for something she did, and if it meant standing up to Asuna then…

"What did you say?" Asuna said in a low voice.

Nodoka nearly lost her resolve but forged ahead. She wasn't going to back down now. Negi was now looking at her in shock and this was her problem to fix.

"I said knock it off! Nothing happened, I found Negi sleepwalking last night and took him back to his tent, but I got caught by the rain. We didn't do anything except sleep next to each other and stay warm. And even if we had done anything else, I'm just as old as you are Asuna and I don't need you to protect me from Negi! So, mind your own business!" Nodoka said hotly. She struggled to keep the tears out of her eyes and her knees from knocking as Asuna stood there trembling with anger. Nodoka was afraid she was about to get a taste of Asuna's legendary anger when suddenly the girl seemed to shudder and then her shoulders slumped in defeat.

"You're right Nodoka-san. I'm sorry." Asuna said lowering eyes and not looking up at Nodoka. Nodoka didn't know who had the bigger look of shock on their face; Negi or herself. "Your relationship with Negi is your business, and you're smart enough not to do something stupid with a ten year old."

With that, and without giving Nodoka another chance to speak, Asuna set Negi back down on the ground and then turned on her heels. Her long legs had her halfway out of camp before Nodoka could even muster the presence of mind to realize that she'd just stared down Asuna. Asuna apparently wasn't overly pleased about it either, as she roughly grabbed Setsuna and headed off into the woods for what promised to be a rather intense physical training session.

Nodoka checked on Negi to see if he was alright, and then looked back to see Misora, Konoka, Ku Fei, and even Kaede staring at her wide-eyed. Nodoka tried to dismiss the stares as she looked after Negi. Ku Fei and Kaede especially were measuring her up like practiced combatants. Their looks however had less to do with combat and more to do with measurements however. Both girls were physically more impressive than Nodoka. Ku Fei was a master of her martial arts and had a shapely and toned body to accompany her petite and sexy good looks. Kaede was also quite shapely and also beautiful, not to mention stacked to the rafters compared to Nodoka.

This however apparently meant nothing to Kaede who knew quite well that Negi was intimidated by girls larger than himself and who didn't appear to put too much stock in breast size. He DID however enjoy Nodoka's company, and liked girls who were intelligent; a big disadvantage to the girl known as Baka Blue. "You know, I think I'll forego training today and work on my summer studies." She said darting back into the tent.

Nodoka watched her go and then looked back at Ku Fei in confusion. The girl likewise watched Kaede go and then looked at Nodoka with a worried expression. She was in a similar boat to Kaede. She was the Yellow Baka Ranger and wasn't even very good with Japanese, much less English, so having long intimate talks with Negi about his favorite books was something she could only dream about. "I think I join you." She said suddenly heading off after Kaede.

Nodoka helped Negi up and he looked around for a moment before looking at Nodoka imploringly. "What just happened here? Am I going to get it from Asuna when we get back to the dorms?"

Nodoka looked at Konoka helplessly, not really knowing what to say. She was standing there with Misora and the two looked like they'd just seen a goldfish give birth to a whale.

"Is it just me, or did it just look like Asuna just acknowledged Nodoka's claim on Negi?" Misora said turning to Konoka and pointing at the two.

"I have no idea." Konoka said in her own confusion. "You two shouldn't be standing out in this cold morning air in your nightclothes. Why don't you go get changed and you can talk about this later after you've had a chance to think… and recover."

Negi nodded and collected his sleeping bag, heading back toward his tent. Nodoka looked at Konoka and Misora who were still looking like they'd just seen Sayo… in the nude.

"I'll just go get changed." Nodoka said quickly excusing herself and rushing toward her tent.

Nodoka ducked inside quickly to keep from having to return the odd looks her friends were giving her and stopped in her tracks. Before her in the sleeping bag, Kotaro and Yue lay sleeping rather intimately. Nodoka struggled to make sense of the vision in front of her. Kotaro was on his back snoring quietly with Yue in his arms, and Yue was on top of him with her head over his heart with her hair loose and tumbling down over her shoulders. Her pajamas and underwear wear cast off hastily to the sides in different directions as if the two of them had…

"Mmm, Nodoka what was all the yelling about? I was hoping to get a little more sleep." Yue said sitting up. As her hair and the sleeping bag slipped off her shoulders Nodoka could see that she and Kotaro were both naked.

Nodoka's hair was standing straight up as she held up a trembling finger at her friend. "Yue d-d-did you and K-K-K-Kotaro-k-k-kun…"

Yue looked down in confusion at the boy under her and seemed to panic. Before Nodoka could even so much as squeak, Yue was up, had a towel covering her and had clamped a hand over Nodoka's mouth. "Not a word about this Nodoka, not a word." Yue said levelly.

Yue kicked Kotaro who hadn't yet stirred. "Hey stupid, go put on some clothes before someone sees you."

Kotaro jolted awake and seeing Nodoka yelped and quickly shifted into the shape of a dog before slipping out the back of the tent.

Nodoka stood there trembling until Yue finally lowered her hand. "You slept with Kotaro?"

Yue quickly rummaged around looking for her camping clothes. "So, you slept with sensei."

Nodoka quickly got flustered. She hadn't been naked. Would Yue if given the same opportunity she'd had last night have…?

"I thought you loved sensei?" Nodoka said in shock.

"I do, look Nodoka it's not what you think okay. After I saw you go into sensei's tent I let Kotaro sleep with me since he didn't have a place to go. We both got rained on, and that's why we were sleeping naked, because I didn't pack any extra clothes." Yue said as she got ready.

"But you were on top of him." Nodoka said slowly.

"I must have gotten cold and rolled over towards the warmth of his body." Yue said hotly.

"And he had his arms around you." Nodoka continued.

"It must have been instinctive on his part. You'd have to take it up with him." Yue said desperately in embarrassment.

"And you weren't even wearing underwear and you packed an extra set." Nodoka said again.

"I forgot okay!" Yue nearly shouted. "Look Nodoka, there's nothing between me and Kotaro. It was just… Look, if Haruna and the others find out about this she's going to make a big deal out of it and before you know it, I'm going to have cheerleaders, relationship counselors, advice columnists, and a bunch of nosy schoolgirls hiding in the bushes watching me every time I come within ten feet of Kotaro. Please Nodoka; just don't say anything about it."

"It's okay Yue; I can sympathize with the gang of date watchers. I'll keep your relationship with Kotaro a secret." Nodoka promised sweetly.

"There's no relationship Nodoka." Yue said flatly.

_I can dream can't I?_ Nodoka thought as she envisioned a list of half the girls in their class who were all vying for Negi's affection and mentally scratched off one name. It would make life a LOT simpler if she could play matchmaker between the two. Nodoka thought about it and then dismissed the idea. It would be selfish and she wasn't Haruna. Besides, the odds of Yue and Kotaro getting together were about a million to one.

* * *

Elsewhere in the forest next to a waterfall, two combatants squared off. One was a novice and the other an expert, and it was obvious from their exchanges.

"Too slow." Setsuna reprimanded as Asuna smashed her massive sword into the ground. The lithe young girl was as nimble as she was skilled. Asuna frequently had problems keeping up with her.

Asuna parried a slice that would have taken her arm off a month ago. Setsuna was a good teacher, knowing just exactly how much she could get away with threatening Asuna so that she would be forced to get better. Asuna still had a couple of very thin scars where she had screwed up something simple and Setsuna hadn't been able to stop her blade in time.

Setsuna rolled to one side as Asuna brought her massive sword smashing down where she had been standing. She'd been finding it easier since the festival to summon the giant weapon, especially when she was angry. Today, it was a piece of cake.

Setsuna immediately rebounded, attacking with a torrent of side slashes; spinning left, and then right as Asuna fought desperately to hold her at bay. Setsuna wasn't even breathing hard. "Would you like to talk about it?" The avian swordswoman asked.

"No. I feel better using my anger to fuel the intensity of my training." Asuna shot back thrusting her sword forward. The tip of the blade buried itself in a tree. It took her a moment to realize that not only had she missed, but Setsuna was standing on her weapon with her own weapon pointing down at her.

"Anger is your opponent's best weapon. If you can't keep your head in combat, then you won't be keeping your head in combat." Setsuna said down at her seriously. "You look like you need to get something off your chest."

"What makes you say that?" Asuna said letting her weapon fade and then turning back toward the little waterfall they were practicing next to.

"The fact that you've been hacking like mad all morning with less skill than you had at the festival. You're swinging that sword of yours around like you were trying to brain somebody with a frying pan rather than practice kendo." Setsuna said seriously as she sheathed her weapon and sat down with her back to a tree.

Asuna looked down at her friend and sighed. Ever since she'd joined them, she'd actually found her to be a friend she was becoming closer to than Konoka. The two of them were a little more alike in their view of things, and Asuna found herself wanting to tell SOMEONE how she was feeling. The tight lipped Setsuna would be an excellent choice.

"I was embarrassed this morning." Asuna said flatly.

"I know; I was there." Setsuna agreed.

"You didn't have to agree so quickly." Asuna shot back.

"I'm not one to sugar coat the truth to people. Is that all that's eating you?" Setsuna asked.

"Yes… No, not really. It's just that, I'm not accustomed to someone coming between me and Negi in a fight." Asuna said.

"Is it that, or are you not happy about someone coming in between you and Negi period?" Setsuna asked pointedly.

"Look, I am NOT that little kid's girlfriend! I love…" Asuna started hotly.

"Takahata-sensei, I know, I know already Asuna. I'm not implying that you feel that way toward Negi, but I do think that you have to be honest with yourself. You care about Negi and don't want to see him get hurt right?" Setsuna asked.

"Yeah, I don't like seeing little kids get hurt." Asuna said defensively.

"It's more than that Asuna. You watch after Negi constantly. You're not only worried about him getting hurt physically, but emotionally as well. You're constantly worrying about how he's doing and whether or not he's pushing himself too hard." Setsuna pointed out.

"That's just because he's an idiot that doesn't know when to stop." Asuna shot back.

"Maybe, but if you want my opinion, I think you love Negi." Setsuna said before quickly waving off her objections. "Not romantically Asuna, I know you've denied it on many occasions and I'm not going to dispute that. I'm just saying for you to care so much for him, you obviously love him and want what's best for him. That's why I'm guessing that it's not Negi you're mad at right now."

Asuna looked away and at first said nothing. She had to admit it though. Setsuna was right, she was angry at Nodoka. Asuna had stood there this morning and been put in her place by the librarian and it smarted. Nodoka had pretty efficiently cornered the girl by getting her in a position of either looking like a jealous girlfriend or backing down.

"It's not that I'm jealous of Honya-chan or anything, it's just that I don't want to see Negi get burned. I mean, I don't think she'd intentionally hurt him, but the two of them know absolutely nothing about relationships. Not to mention the fact that Negi could get hurt in this relationship without it even being her fault. He could get fired for something like that." Asuna said worriedly.

"Well, you're not exactly an expert on relationships yourself Asuna." Setsuna pointed out. "The best thing to do is just let Nodoka and Negi move at their own pace. You were right, Nodoka isn't going to do anything stupid, and she'd rather die than cause trouble for Negi. Probably the best thing you could do for the two of them would be to keep other people, like Haruna and Chamo-kun, from butting into their relationship and trying to push it along faster than it should."

"Nodoka isn't going to have an easy time of it. Whether they realize it or not, over half the class is in love with him in some form or another. She's going to have plenty of rivals." Asuna said quietly.

"I guess that'll have to be her problem." Setsuna agreed.

"So what makes YOU such an authority on relationships?" Asuna said suddenly turning on the girl. Maybe she could at least take some comfort from making Setsuna blush with embarrassment over Konoka. "What about you and Konoka?"

Surprisingly, this did not have its usual effect on Setsuna. She only sighed sadly and looked out at the waterfall. "I'm not really an expert, but I know you have to let people be who they are."

"Why the long face all of a sudden?" Asuna asked. "Did something happen between you two?"

"I think the more accurate statement would be that nothing has happened. I don't think Ojou-sama feels the same way I do." Setsuna said sadly.

"Have you told her how you feel?" Asuna asked.

"No. Confessing one's love to a boy is one thing, confessing it to another girl is something entirely different. I don't think she thinks of me romantically." Setsuna confessed.

"But you DO think about her that way right?" Asuna prodded.

Setsuna only nodded. It seemed that Setsuna had come to trust Asuna enough as a friend to open herself up as well. Asuna was touched at how much she was hearing from the girl who generally kept her own counsel.

"I didn't understand it at first. I just thought that I loved her like a sister, but now I realize that I'm _in_ love with her. That's one of the reasons why…" Setsuna started, but suddenly clammed up.

"That's why what?" Asuna pressed.

"It's why I haven't become her partner yet. Konoka has been after me to become her partner. When you walked in on us the other morning, she'd just about talked me into it. I just don't know what it'll do to me getting to kiss her like that and then being at her side and never getting the chance to do it again. It would be like getting to see heaven but not being able to go in. Everything else would seem like hell by comparison." Setsuna said morosely.

"How can you be so sure she doesn't return your feelings?" Asuna asked.

"She DOES return them, only as a sister. She doesn't see me as a romantic partner, only as her closest friend who she'd do anything for. You don't know how much I've wanted her to look at me like I do her when we're bathing. I sneak glances at her and then dream about her at night. You don't know how jealous I am of you sometimes getting to stay in the same room with her." Setsuna confided.

"Looks like you're in the same boat I am with Takahata-sensei." Asuna noted.

Setsuna nodded glumly and then stood up. "Well, I guess we both have some frustration to work off now."

Asuna smiled and got to her feet. She had some ideas about how she was going to cope with Negi, but for now it sounded like Setsuna needed the training as badly as she did.

* * *

Kotaro grumbled from where he sat in the trees watching the girls come out of their tents and start gathering around Negi. The current target of his annoyance came out and was conversing with her friend waiting for Negi to get started with the lesson on magic.

The nerve of that little squirt treating him like that, he was a demon after all! Her comments still burned in his ears. It happened every time he tried to talk to the girl. She'd start talking and all of a sudden he wouldn't understand anything. His world was much simpler when Yue actually shut up.

Kotaro crossed his arms and tried to take a nap. He actually hadn't gotten much sleep the night before. He had tried for an hour after he joined her in the sleeping bag. The comment about smelling a wet dog had made him angry but he'd been able to hide it. Getting angry with the girl only ended with him mouthing off, and then the girl would verbally hand him his heart while it was still beating. He'd trained all his life in physical training and combat, and he hated to admit it, but he was totally unprepared to defend himself against Yue and her 'logic'.

He'd finally come up with a good retort, and then he'd forgotten it. He rolled toward her and she was already asleep. He'd then rolled back over to stare up at the ceiling of the tent. The peal of thunder had apparently startled the girl into being nearly awake because the next thing he knew she had rolled over on top of him and was holding him close.

The memory still made his face feel hot. He hadn't tried to wake her, but her being so close had made him feel funny. It had taken him hours to get to sleep after that. He had to admit that with her on him like that he'd been a lot warmer, but he had no experience with girls and that _particular_ girl was a complete mystery to him. Then this morning she'd kicked him awake and ordered him out of the tent like he'd done something wrong! He would have given her a piece of his mind if her friend hadn't been there.

To make things worse he was going to do some training with Kaede today, but now she'd retreated to her tent to study with Ku Fei. As if your brains were enough to keep you out of trouble. Yue was just lucky that Kotaro didn't hit girls or he'd have shut her up with a good right hook.

Kotaro continued thinking about his diminutive problem when inspiration struck him. If he couldn't shut up the girl one way, he'd find a different way. Still handling women was tricky business, he'd seen Negi get the living daylights beaten out of him by opponents much weaker than himself because he shared Kotaro's reservations about harming girls, and he didn't want a similarly embarrassing experience.

Kotaro hopped down and headed for Kaede's tent. She was a girl, so what better way to fight an enemy than to study with someone with similar strengths. Kotaro grinned at his brilliant idea. "Just you wait Yue. I'm going to get you yet."

Kotaro slipped into the tent where the two Baka Rangers had their noses planted firmly in their books. He sat down and the two barely noted his existence. "Kaede-ne-san, I need some help."

"Not now Kotaro-kun, I'm trying to study." Kaede said seriously. "We're falling _seriously_ behind."

"Yes, is worse than we thought." Ku Fei agreed looking at her book. "What exactly '_preposition_'?"

"I think that's where someone is making a suggestion or an offer." Kaede said seriously.

Ku Fei nodded and continued reading. Kotaro merely shook his head. "Please I need your help. Here, I have a _preposition_ for you. If you can tell me what I need to know I'll help you study."

The two of them looked at him dubiously. "I think we better on own." Ku Fei said sadly.

"Well then at least hear me out." Kotaro pleaded. "There's this girl I need to get."

Studying suddenly forgotten, Kaede and Ku Fei rounded on the boy. "What girl are you trying to get Kotaro-kun?" Kaede asked excitedly.

Kotaro thought about telling them, but decided against it. They might not help him if they knew he was trying to beat their friend in a battle of words. "I really can't say; I just haven't got any idea of how to do it. I thought since you were both girls you could help me. I have no idea what I need to say to her."

"We're honored Kotaro-kun." Kaede said smiling. "So what seems to be the problem?"

"Well, I can't seem to think straight whenever I talk to her. I think of all kinds of things to say later, but by then she's gone. I feel stupid every time I try to say anything. It doesn't help matters that she's so smart." Kotaro said in frustration.

"Sometimes best way to say what feeling is action." Ku Fei pronounced. From nowhere she was suddenly wearing the stupid little beard and mustache she carried around.

Kotaro looked up excitedly. "I can do action!" A spark of hope began to burst in his chest. "My only problem is that the girl doesn't care about how strong I am. I just wish she would stop talking."

"Then it's simple." Kaede said finally. "If displaying your strength doesn't do the trick, then you'll just have to kiss her."

Kotaro's eyes nearly popped out of his skull. "Kiss her?!"

"Yes, if you kiss her then she'll know exactly what you're thinking of her." Kaede said smartly.

"I didn't know a kiss could do that. Is that some sort of magic?" Kotaro asked bewildered.

"It can be if done right." Kaede affirmed. "But you need to be sure you follow it up right."

"How so?" Kotaro asked engrossed.

"Well, you need to look her in the eyes after the kiss and say something cool, like 'You talk too much'." Kaede said in a whisper. She also leaned close to Kotaro and looked in his eyes when she said it.

"She definitely does that, but are you sure that she won't be able to speak after that?" Kotaro asked.

"Do it right, and she'll be totally speechless." Kaede said nodding. "So where did you meet this girl?"

"At the festival." Kotaro said offhandedly. What they were proposing sounded a little ridiculous, but then girls tended to be a little silly. No wonder he hadn't thought of arguing against Yue like this. "I'd seen her around before that, but that was the first place we'd ever really talked."

Kaede and Ku Fei were both smiling at him now. The two of them nodded and sent him on his way. "Remember if you need any more advice on how to handle girls just come to us and we'll give you some more pointers." Kaede told him.

"Thanks!" Kotaro said as he ran off in the forest. Yue was going down as soon as he could get her alone.

**A/N: I hope everyone is enjoying themselves so far. I do have one note however. I am using a premise in this story that may depart from the manga. In this story it will be possible for some of the girls to use each other's artifacts. I've been looking back in the manga and I don't know that such a thing would actually be possible, but until I find out otherwise, we'll keep going the way we are.**


	3. Training

**A/N: I do not own Negima. I apparently don't even possess myself, since everyone keeps telling me I've been 'owned'.**

**Chapter 3) Training**

"Good Morning Sensei." The girls intoned out of habit as they bowed to Negi. The girls sat across from him on logs around the extinguished fire pit. Negi was thankful the morning was still a bit chilly.

"Alright, first thing is to see how you girls have progressed." Negi said in a business-like fashion. It was much easier handling a class of only four girls instead of thirty-one. "Use the fire spell I taught you to light a small fire in the pit here."

The girls all complied, lighting small fires with their magic. The only one that wasn't succeeding was Nodoka.

"Here Miyazaki-san, you need to wave your wand more, like this." Negi said taking her hand and waving the wand with her as she muttered the incantation. After he was done he turned to see Konoka and Misora were trying to find something else to look at. Yue on the other hand was staring intently.

Negi shrugged mentally and went on with the lesson. "Misora, please tell me how far you've gotten with your studies."

"Not much further than Konoka-san." Misora admitted. "I don't have a lot of magical strength."

"Well, that shouldn't stop you. Strength isn't everything. A mage's true power is in his mind they say. Even combat mages use their knowledge as weapons." Negi lectured.

"I just wish I had a cooler artifact like you guys." Misora said glumly.

"Well, that has a lot to do with the power level of the mage you exchanged your contract with." Negi said seriously. "As my grandfather used to say, a Ministra Magi is only as powerful as the mage they protect."

"Well Cocone isn't that powerful." Misora nodded. "All my artifact can do is help me run very fast and jump very high."

"Well don't despair. Artifacts often grow as you do." Negi said helpfully.

"Artifacts grow in power?" Konoka asked.

"Yes, magical artifacts are generally kept by magical spirits who heed the cards you girls carry. When not in use the artifacts go back to their dimension to await their next summoning. You can consider your pactio cards a mystic library card if you will. When you speak the command word, the spirits take the card and replace it with the artifact you desire. As the power of the mage grows, and as the strength and experience of the Ministra grows, the pactio cards can be used to summon more powerful artifacts, or even develop new powers of their own." Negi said looking at the girls.

"Just like Asuna's fan that becomes a sword." Yue said seriously.

"Exactly." Negi said with pride. Yue was obviously developing much better than the rest of the girls. She definitely wouldn't be a Baka Ranger when it comes to magic class.

"I wonder if I could get a better artifact if I kissed Negi-sensei." Misora wondered.

Negi decided to aggressively quell such thoughts before they led to yet another lip lock with yet another member of his class. "It won't matter much in the long run."

"Why not?" Misora asked in disappointment.

"If you become a full blooded mage, you'll lose your artifact." Yue chimed in. She had her encyclopedia open in front of her looking up information on artifacts.

"Aw, maaaannnn." Misora said in disgust. "I can't win for losing."

"Well, don't despair. Mages often craft their own artifacts. For instance, my grandfather keeps a library of books similar to those used by Yue and Nodoka." Negi told them. "His magical library is immensely powerful, with books that could be dangerous if they fell into the wrong hands."

"So if I become a mage, I'll lose my fans that give me the ability to heal?" Konoka asked sadly.

"Yes, but by then you should have the power to heal using your own magic instead of relying on your artifact." Negi told her. It was at this point he decided to enter his next topic. "So, have you girls decided on your magic phrase yet?"

"Our magic phrase?" Nodoka asked quizzically.

"Yes, you should all have a unique magical phrase that unlocks your power. It will keep you from unintentionally casting magic when using more complex spells. Since some of the simpler spells only require one or two magical words." Negi said pulling out his staff.

"For instance, the simple levitation spells." Negi said holding out his staff.

"Consurgo." Negi commanded as he let go of the staff and let it float in front of him. "There is also a defensive spell that allows a mage to levitate their enemies if they're attacked, but it requires more words. Otherwise, the spell is limited to inanimate objects that the mage happens to be holding. To use magic properly, you have to include your key phrase that let's the spirits know that you're done incanting the spell."

Yue was busy scribbling down everything in her little notebook. Negi was happy to see her taking an interest in the lesson. The other girls just looked lost. "So have you given it any thought?"

Most of the girls just muttered to themselves, but Yue's hand was already up. "I have one sensei."

"Very well, Yue, what would you like for your magic phrase?" Negi asked.

Yue cleared her throat and spoke clearly. "Ego Puto Ergo Ego Exsisto."

Negi smiled. "Somehow, I'm not surprised. The rest of you girls pay attention, I'm going to perform the ritual that will seal this phrase to Yue.

Negi quickly sketched the magic circle in the dirt, and stepped back so Yue could step inside. "Now Yue, focus your energy just like you've been doing with the wand. Only this time, instead of focusing on the wand focus on the circle at your feet."

Yue nodded and Negi and the girls watched as the circle began to glow faintly. Yue herself was cast in a purple light as her magic began to wash around the clearing. "Now repeat after me Yue. Phasmatis Consisto Vocis Exaudio Ego Puto Ergo Ego Exsisto."

Yue nodded and spoke the words of the binding spell. The magic circle flashed brilliantly and then it darkened, leaving her standing alone. Thin wisps of vapor arose from the ground where the magic circle had been.

"I did it!" Yue said excitedly. It was the most expression that Negi had ever seen the girl use. She must truly be elated.

"If any of you girls decide on a phrase come see me, or else you can have Chamo put the circle together for you. You've now taken your first step toward being a mage Yue. I anticipate at the rate you're going that by the time you graduate you'll be ready to become a Magi Incontencia like myself." Negi said happily.

"What's that?" Konoka asked.

"Well right now, I'm considered an Incontencia Magi or 'unrestrained mage' because I've completed my magical training and have been sent out into the world on assignment. Once I complete my assignments and proven, I'll be promoted to a full mage. Then I basically decide what to do with my life from there on out. I'm basically on my own. It's my dream to then become a Magister Magi, the most powerful mage class there is." Negi said as he instructed his pupils.

"So, how powerful do you have to be to get promoted?" Konoka asked.

"It isn't based on power." Misora piped in. "Negi is already stronger than my mother or father, even though they're both full magi. It's like a trial period to see if a mage can be trusted to keep the secrets of magic hidden and to uphold the ethics of the mages."

"But you DO have to be powerful to get promoted to Magister Magi don't you?" Konoka continued.

"Yes, but there isn't a set power level." Negi continued. "It varies from mage to mage. Magister Magi isn't so much a rank as it is a title that the world of magic uses to signify it's most powerful and respected members. Evangeline for instance is as powerful as any mage I've ever seen, but she is an evil mage and therefore hasn't the respect of the mage world. They would never refer to her as a Magister Magi. Takamichi has more respect among the magic world than any man I know and yet he isn't even a mage. Only someone like the headmaster would be qualified for such a title. There are very few who ever gain that type of recognition and power."

"How many Magister Magi are there?" Nodoka asked.

"Currently, only eleven; and each of them either sit on the council of five, or lead the most prestigious mage families in the west." Negi said seriously. "That is, with one exception."

"Who's the exception?" Konoka asked.

"That would be my grandfather, Nicholas. He's a Magister Magi even though he isn't the head of a large family or a ruling member of the council. He's a member of the Magic Knights and is the closest thing to a military commander that the magic world has. Allies and enemies alike refer to him as 'The Black Dragon of Wales'." Negi said sullenly.

"You don't seem happy when you speak of him." Nodoka pointed out as she inched closer. She looked like she was preparing for a 'poor-Negi' hug.

"He's a great man." Negi said sadly. "But he didn't get along with my father very well. My uncle used to say that the two were like oil and water. I would visit his estate with Nekane during breaks from school. We've… never talked much."

Negi found himself hugged before he knew what was happening. Normally, he would try to keep some distance from his students, as a proper teacher should, but this time he just accepted the comfort. In his short life he'd decided that 'distance' was something that wasn't always to be desired, and made him appreciate that much more how he'd come to love the girls in his class.

"Well, I guess we should get along with the lesson." Negi said finally. The girls went back to their seats on the logs, but Nodoka lingered for a moment with a look that said 'Are you okay'. Negi smiled at her to reassure her, and went back to his lesson.

"Well, let's see what elements you're inclined towards Yue. Since you're the furthest along now, we'll use you as the example for the rest of the class." Negi instructed.

"Now Yue's gone from being Baka Black to being Yue-sempai." Konoka giggled. The rest of the girls giggled a friendly little laugh for their friend and settled in to watch. Yue for her part looked nervous. She very seldom liked speaking in front of her class, and this time it was apparently no exception.

"What do I need to do sensei?" Yue asked timidly.

"Very simple really, you're going to call out to the spirits and we're going to see which ones answer you." Negi said looking around. "It looks like everything is here that we'll need. Now, using your key phrase at the end, repeat these words after me."

Yue nodded as she listened to Negi recite the calling spell and then she began speaking the words herself. "Propinquo Natura Phasma Itaque Consuefacio Mea Ego Puto Ergo Ego Exsisto."

Everyone waited in anticipation for what might happen next. The spell Yue had recited sounded extremely impressive. Negi didn't have the heart to tell them that it was a rather simple transaction and merely brought whatever spirits a mage might be inclined toward into coming towards them.

Suddenly a jet of water erupted from the waterfall nearby and dowsed Yue. She was soaked from head to toe. The rest of the girls looked at the sodden girl and then looked back at Negi. "Well, that's normal." Negi said quickly. "It depends on the spirit."

"You could have warned me." Yue groused. Somewhere Negi thought he could hear Kotaro laughing his tail off.

"Well, it seems you're attuned to the water element. It'll be the first one you need to study." Negi said quickly reciting a spell to dry her clothes.

"You mean I'll be able to wield ice like Evangeline?" Yue said stunned.

"Not exactly, Evangeline uses darkness and ice, not water. Your magic will be slightly different though there will be some spells of hers you can duplicate." Negi said sagely. "Once you've begun to master water, we'll see where you can branch out to."

"So when do we get partners?" Konoka asked quickly.

"Well, technically you can take a partner at any time that you have the power. But you have to be forewarned, if you take a partner your pactio card will be voided. The acceptance of a Ministra Magi is usually one of the last things you do on your road to becoming a mage all your own. Remember too that in your case, if you make Setsuna your partner, her pactio card will be replaced by one from you. You girls also can't do anything but provisional contracts as well. The full ritual is a bit long and difficult and requires more than one mage to perform." Negi said looking at the girl worriedly. He sincerely hoped she waited a while before taking Setsuna on as a partner. It would be best if she learned a little more.

"On that note, I assume you're going to be a traditional mage." Negi said to the young healer.

"Oh yes, I never have to worry as long as Set-chan is around." Konoka said seriously.

"Well, you still might want to learn at least a little offensive magic. After all, you can't always rely totally on your Ministra Magi. Sometimes you have to defend them so that they can defend you." Negi said seriously.

"Can you teach us an offensive spell?" Yue asked hopefully.

"Not until you've mastered your element a bit more." Negi said judiciously. "Each form of attack is specific to a particular element with its own quirks and uses."

Yue tried to hide her own disappointment. Negi thought for a moment and then came up with an idea. "What I CAN teach you all are Ministra spells."

"Ministra spells?" He heard from four voices in unison.

"Yes, Ministra Magi can call upon their mage's power to perform simple spells in his absence or when he is unconscious. This allows them more versatility. I've already shown Asuna a couple, but you girls should be able to use them too. But be careful, you can wear out your mage if you use too much." Negi instructed.

The girls all eagerly nodded and Negi figured anything he had just said had immediately gone in one ear and out the other. He sighed and continued. "You've all seen how high and far Asuna can jump but she also has assistance from my magic."

"I saw that at the festival." Nodoka commented.

"You did?" Negi asked in confusion.

"Yes it was when you…" Nodoka started and then quickly shut up. "Never mind, I've just seen Asuna do it before."

"I see." Negi said uneasily. "Anyway, the spell is simply, 'Sim Tua Pars'. It will allow you to draw magical power out of me in order to perform some feats of magic. In Asuna's case it bolsters her speed, jumping, and strength. This form of the spell is rather limited, but it should allow you do things you normally couldn't."

The girls started reciting the spell and Negi was listening to them when he turned to see Setsuna and Asuna returning. It was now late afternoon and they were about to break camp and head back to the dorms.

* * *

Asuna walked resolutely toward the campsite. She wasn't looking forward to this, but she needed to clear the air. She'd done a lot of thinking about it and it was time she set everyone, including Negi, straight. 

Negi watched the two of them approach with trepidation. Apparently Asuna had scared him this morning and he was still worried that he was in for a beating. Asuna hoped he would be reassured by what she had to say.

"Alright everybody let's get ready to break camp." Asuna announced. "But first I have something to say."

Everyone came out of the woodwork, literally. Kotaro came loping back in from the woods, and Kaede and Ku Fei both poked their heads out of the tent curiously. As soon as Asuna was certain she had everyone's attention, she dropped to her knees in front of Negi. He was now only slightly taller than she was. She purposefully reached out and pulled the boy into a hug.

"Negi, I love you." Asuna stated simply.

Gasps erupted all around her and Negi tensed up ready to fly. Asuna kept him locked in her embrace and waited for the initial shock to wear off before she continued.

"Everybody just let me finish." Asuna sternly admonished. "Negi, I mean it when I say I love you, but I'm not _in_ love with you. Everyone keeps getting the wrong ideas about the two of us, so I just wanted to set the record straight. Negi, I've never had a little brother and I really do care for you. I don't want to see you get hurt. I'm not good at saying what I feel, which is obvious from how I get around Takahata-sensei, so I wanted to let you know."

Everyone seemed to sigh at exactly the same moment. Some were from relief, but in Konoka's case Asuna figured she was just touched by how cute it looked. Negi was now hugging her back with all his might. "Asuna, I love you too. Ever since I left Wales I've been lonely without Nekane and now I'm glad I've found someone who cares for me like you do."

Asuna stood and Negi wiped a tear from his eye. "Does this mean you won't get angry with me when I wake up in your bed?"

"Don't push it squirt." Asuna said poking him in the forehead.

* * *

Yue smiled at the touching scene and went back to practicing her magic until they left. Her only problem was that she lacked any sort of real power for her spells. She was stronger than Misora, but only just. She and Misora both lacked somewhat in the raw magical strength that Negi and Konoka were blessed with. 

An idea struck Yue as she continued to practice. If Asuna gained physical power by channeling Negi's magic, could his power also bolster her spells?

All around her, the rest of the camp was getting ready to leave. Unfortunately, Yue didn't notice Nodoka coming her way.

"Sim Tua Pars." Yue recited. She could feel the power from her bond with Negi coursing through her looking for an outlet. She closed her eyes, opened herself and gave it one. "Practica Bigi Naru Venti!"

Yue opened her eyes as she finished the spell and realized to her horror that she was facing Nodoka. The wind roared from the tip of her wand catching her hapless friend squarely in the chest. Yue feared the wind might knock the girl into the river instead of flipping her skirt up like it did with her when she tried to use it in front of Negi before. This time however it slammed into Nodoka and shredded her clothes right in front of everyone.

Nodoka stood there stunned and quite naked in the mountain breeze. Yue gulped and immediately started bowing. "I'm so sorry Nodoka! I'll replace them."

Negi came running over throwing his coat over Nodoka and sporting the first nosebleed Yue had ever seen him with. Yue suddenly went from being sorry to being jealous. She mentally slapped herself on the forehead. _Why don't I just gift wrap Negi and hand him to her with a great big bow on top!_

"Way to go there genius." Kotaro commented clinically.

"Just zip it pea-brain." Yue grumbled back as she watched Negi fussing over Nodoka and for once wishing she'd been the one to get disrobed.

"I guess I can count this as one for me huh?" Kotaro said glibly.

"We're not keeping score, moron." Yue said acidly. "If we were you'd have lost a long time ago."

Kotaro merely turned and headed back toward his tent. Yue sighed. How in the world he was able to get under her skin so easily she'd never know.

The rest of the afternoon the group all packed up their things and started walking back to campus. Yue tried to think of ways she could make herself more powerful. Evangeline had told Konoka that you couldn't really increase your magical capacity, but maybe she could find something else to offset the handicap.

She was deep in thought about this when she noticed Kotaro. As they walked he seemed to be coming near her to say something, but then someone would come close and he'd back away again. Yue figured it must be one of his inane points of 'logic' he kept trying to get over on her in their little sparring matches. The boy never thought things through and was denser than lead. She wondered vaguely what the demon could be wanting.

Another sudden thought occurred to Yue. There was perhaps something she _could_ do to become more powerful. She'd seen some references to it during her studies in the library concerning the things she'd experienced in Kyoto. She might be able to capitalize on some of that knowledge.

She'd have to get Setsuna to help though. Yue briefly considered the lithe girl. She was powerful in her own right, but she might disapprove of her methods if she told her what she was planning. Yue decided that she would simply get the things she required for her plan and not tell Setsuna what she needed them for.

Still, this could be dangerous so she would need at least SOMEBODY for assistance. She could ask one of the magically aware girls from the class, but again she'd probably get ratted on to Negi. Mana was a possibility, but the girl charged exorbitant prices.

Yue's eyes fell on Kotaro again. He wouldn't think anything of what she was going to attempt. Yue suspected that the boy didn't think of all that much really. He'd be the perfect assistant to her plan; nice and stupid. With luck she'd be able to set things in motion tonight and pull it off tomorrow. She'd have to corner Kotaro alone tomorrow and enlist his help.

Yue could hardly wait. After all, water was supposed to be her element.

* * *

Kaede watched as Kotaro roamed around the little group restlessly. He obviously had something on his mind and kept trying to go up and talk to Yue. Kaede held back and watched closely as Kotaro once again failed to talk to the girl. It was then that something dawned on her. He's not… 

Suddenly Yue stopped and announced she was going to the bathroom. Everyone stopped to wait, but Yue waved them on. "We're nearly back to campus, I know the way from here. I just need to go, now."

Everyone else shrugged and headed towards the outskirts of the campus. Yue disappeared into the bushes and Kotaro lagged behind. Kaede separated and hid herself to see what was going to happen. She hated to admit it, but she felt towards Kotaro about the same way Asuna felt towards Negi. She also wasn't going to let Kotaro get into a fight out here with the girl.

Yue finally stepped from the bushes and looked up to see Kotaro. "Good, I figured you'd stay behind."

Kotaro stopped short as he had been about to advance on the girl. Kaede watched with interest. "You did?"

"Yes, will you meet me for breakfast tomorrow?" Yue asked smiling.

Kaede stood there with as much shock on her face as was apparent on Kotaro's. "You want ME to meet YOU for breakfast?"

"Yeah, my treat. There's something I need to talk about with you seeing as you're such a strong young man." Yue said happily.

Kotaro seemed at a loss for words. He just stood there trying to get his voice to work. "Uh, sure." He said finally.

"Great, I'll see you there then." Yue said before setting off down the path.

Kotaro stood there stunned for a moment until Kaede reached him. "You can't mean that YUE is the girl you're out to get do you?" Kaede demanded.

"Well, yeah. You aren't mad at me are you?" Kotaro asked worriedly.

Kaede smiled at the boy and nearly melted at how cute it all was. "No, I'm not angry. In fact I'll help you as much as I can."

Kotaro looked relieved. "Great, I seriously don't know what I'm going to do. What you suggested seemed so… foreign to me."

"Well, that's to be expected. Now listen here. Tomorrow when you meet her for breakfast will be the perfect time. The two of you will be alone and you can really let her have it." Kaede said excitedly.

Kotaro seemed to perk up as Kaede was talking to him. "Great! By this time tomorrow, Yue is mine!"

Kaede clapped him on the shoulder in encouragement. The boy was confident; she had to give him that. By the time she was done with him he'd be a real Casanova.

**A/N: Hope you're liking the story so far even if it is a bit slow in the beginning. Believe it or not I'm planning on this being an action story...**

**A.A. :)**


	4. Skipping

**A/N: Sorry about this being a day late, I just got back from being out of town. Enjoy…**

**Chapter 4) Skipping**

Negi walked through the halls towards class wearily. The girls had been in the room late after their camping trip. He hadn't gotten much sleep, and to make matters worse he'd discovered this morning that someone had gone through his storehouse of magical items over the weekend. There was no telling who since Chamo had spent the weekend out on the town somewhere. One of the girls might have gotten into it last night, but there was no way of telling who or what was taken since he'd never had the chance to catalog everything he'd brought from home.

Negi sighed and decided to question the girls after school. One of them probably just went looking for some aging candy for a hot date or something.

Negi stepped into the classroom and everyone stood up. Something tickled his magical senses and he stood there for a moment scanning the faces of his class before he began taking roll.

"Yuna Akashi." Negi stated purposefully.

"Here, Negi-sensei." Yuna said sending him a quick wink and a grin.

"Kazumi Asakura." Negi said next.

"Here, sweetie." Asakura said blowing him a kiss.

"Yue Ayase." Negi said continuing.

"Here, Negi." Yue said giving him a wide smile.

Negi stopped for a moment and looked up at Yue. She was smiling back at him and batting her eyelashes. This was definitely not Yue. Negi continued with the roll until he reached Setsuna who was eyeing Yue worriedly. Negi finished the roll and quickly recited a spell under his breath.

As he then gazed over his class he saw what had touched his magical senses. Yue had been replaced by one of Setsuna's replicas. This explained why Setsuna was looking so worried, as it was pretty obvious where she had most likely acquired the doppelganger.

Negi cleared his throat and turned to Yue's double. "Yue-san, Setsuna-san, will you please come with me to the office? There's something I need to discuss with you before we begin class. The rest of you please turn to page one hundred and ninety four. Please familiarize yourselves with the passage, as I will be giving a quiz on it as soon as I return."

Various groans erupted from the class as Negi escorted the fake Yue out the door of the classroom. As soon as he was out of earshot he cancelled the spell on the fake Yue and turned to Setsuna. "I'm assuming Yue got this from you."

"Yes, Negi-sensei." Setsuna said guiltily. "She didn't tell me she was going to use it to skip class."

Negi rolled his eyes and handed the talisman to Setsuna. "Well, could you please use this to trace down where she is? I'll need to go collect her and bring her back to class." Setsuna nodded and the two of them set off.

* * *

"Are you sure about this?" Kotaro asked the tall girl.

"Certainly Kotaro, you want to make a good first impression." Kaede said smiling.

"But she already knows me." Kotaro said flatly.

"Yes, but this is your first date." Kaede pointed out.

"Hey, wait a minute who said anything about a da…" Kotaro started.

"There she is, get going." Kaede said slapping Kotaro on the rump to get him moving.

Kotaro grumbled at the smack he got across his behind from the ninja girl. What was she talking about, date. He was here to put Yue in her place and she's here making jokes. Not to mention making him get dressed up for this stupid thing. Though looking cool when he finally beats Yue at her own game did sound reasonable.

Kotaro walked up to the girl, who was in her standard uniform, wearing the slacks and dress shirt Kaede had picked out. Yue immediately noticed him as he crossed the food court to where they had agreed the previous night to meet.

"What are YOU all dressed up for?" Yue asked critically.

"Uh, Kaede thought it looked cool." Kotaro replied slightly embarrassed. He wasn't accustomed to going into battle dressed like this, but then this wasn't a conventional battle either.

Yue shook her head wearily and then looked around. "Come on, I need you for something, but I can't tell you about it here."

Kotaro was about to object when Yue grabbed him by the hand and darted off toward one of the abandoned buildings on campus.

Kotaro would have rather defeated the girl in public, but considering the unorthodox tactics that Kaede and Ku Fei had suggested he figured in private would probably be just as well. He didn't want to humiliate Yue, in a way he actually respected her, he just wanted her to see him as more than a simpleton.

Yue led him through the building to the stairs leading to the basement. She pushed her way into the barely lit room and there she released Kotaro.

"Hey squirt, why'd you bring me all the way down here?" Kotaro asked.

"I need your help." Yue said lighting a single candle.

"Help with what?" Kotaro pressed.

Yue rounded on the boy immediately. "Look, you're always going on about how strong you are, so here's a chance for you to prove it. I need some protection for what I'm about to do and you're going to provide it."

Kotaro thought it over for all of two seconds. It sounded dangerous, which immediately had his interest. However, this also left him a window of opportunity. "Alright, but afterwards you and I are going to set some things straight between us."

Yue grinned. "That sounds like a challenge."

"It is." Kotaro said aggressively.

"Alright, you help me and I'll listen to whatever it is you have to say." Yue said nodding.

Kotaro watched as she pulled a small vial out of her pocket. "So what do I have to do?"

"Keep these three off me while I cast a spell." Yue said as she suddenly pulled the cork on the bottle and cast it into a magical circle she'd drawn in the middle of the room. "Sim Tua Pars."

"What the… that's…" Kotaro said in shock.

"We're FREE!" Three small voices said as the three slimes; Ameko, Suramui, and Purin, erupted from the vial prison into which they had been sealed.

"What are you doing letting those slimes out!" Kotaro roared.

"Shut up and get to fighting while I cast this spell!" Yue shouted back.

Kotaro jumped toward the slimes without thinking. The three were halfway across the distance separating them from Yue when he reached them. Kotaro slashed forward with his claws only to have them split apart and wrap themselves around him. He grabbed two of the amoeba girls with his hands, their bodies writhing in his grip, but the third wrapped itself around his chest and began to constrict the air out of him. He had nearly lost consciousness when he heard Yue's chant.

"Promitto Hic Creatura Iussu Hic Unus Per Hic Iugum Ego Puto Ergo Ego Exsisto." Yue recited, standing outside the circle of power with her magic book hovering before her. The candle gave off an eerie blue glow for a moment and the circle of power roared to life. The three slimes immediately released Kotaro and raced for Yue. Kotaro scrambled to get to them in time, but he realized he wasn't going to make it.

"HALT!" Yue shouted holding her palms forward.

The aquatic girls immediately stopped in their tracks causing Kotaro to collide with them, or rather through them. He got up slowly, keeping himself between them and Yue.

"You bound us!" Ameko said plaintively.

"How can you be strong enough to bind us?" Purin demanded.

"I got a little boost from my teacher." Yue replied back. "You three now serve me."

"No way!" Kotaro shouted in unison with the three slimes.

"Oh yes, I looked up the spell and checked it several times. You three are now bound to me. Whatever it is I command you to do, you have to do it, understood?" Yue said imperiously.

"We've been beaten again haven't we." Suramui said looking at her 'sisters'.

"It looks like it." Ameko said in a huff.

"Man, it sucks to be us." Purin pointed out.

"I know the feeling." Kotaro groused. "I can't believe you used me just so you could go conjuring some demons. Do you have any idea what these three could have done to you?"

"Of course, that's why I brought you along." Yue pointed out.

Kotaro raised his finger to argue, but it died there. Oh yes, he was getting even with her for that one.

"Now, you three are going to get out of here." Yue commanded. "There is a bathtub in my dorm room. The three of you are going to go there and wait for me there until I come to get you."

"Yes… mistress." The three of them said grudgingly.

In an instant the three of them seeped away leaving no trace of the events that had transpired other than a damp empty basement and a lit candle that had now returned to normal.

Kotaro shook his head and looked at the diminutive mage. She was getting in over her head and he knew it. One simply didn't conjure demons and expect them to obey like pets.

"So what did you want to say to me?" Yue asked with a self-satisfied smirk.

Finally, it was too much for Kotaro to handle. He was going to wipe that smirk off her face if it was the last thing he did. He stepped forward resolutely, and as Yue opened her mouth he brought his crashing down on hers.

Kotaro didn't really know that much about how to kiss a girl since he'd never tried it before so he just opened his mouth a little pressed in close to her. She seemed to struggle for a moment and her sharp intake of breath sucked his tongue into her mouth. Yue squirmed in his hands as he held her arms and pulled her close. He had no idea if it was working, but after a moment she stopped squirming and almost seemed collapse in his arms. He quickly wrapped his arms around her to hold her up not knowing exactly how long kisses were supposed to last.

Finally Kotaro pulled back to look at the absolutely stunned look on Yue's face. Then he remembered the other things Kaede had told him. He had to say something cool. He leaned in close to Yue and looked her in the eyes just as Kaede had told him.

"You talk too much." Kotaro said in a whisper. He wasn't certain what to do next though. Yue was obviously at a loss for words and her stunned expression told him he could probably count this one as a win on his part. Just to make sure though, Kotaro leaned in and kissed her again.

* * *

"Yue!" Negi shouted. "Is THIS what you skipped my class for?"

Yue turned her head, breaking the kiss with Kotaro and looked, horrified, into the face of Negi, Setsuna, and Kaede. Her day could not POSSIBLY get any better. Negi looked shocked. Kaede's jaw was hanging open. Setsuna's eyes were about to pop out of her head.

Yue fought for air to try to speak. She'd been about to yawn since she'd been up most of the night preparing the ritual for fear that Negi might discover she'd lifted the bottle out of his horde of magical artifacts. Kotaro had plunged in and the next thing she knew she was going weak in the knees as he embraced her. Now to look up and see Negi looking at her was a nightmare beyond all nightmares.

Yue's mind raced to try to find an excuse; ANY excuse that would get her out of this predicament. If she told Negi why she was really there he would be furious with her for conjuring those demons and taking the vial. She therefore had absolutely no recourse whatsoever.

"Yes, sensei. This was why I skipped your class." Yue lied. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Since the first kiss." Kaede said stunned.

"Yue, I am SO sorry we walked in when we did." Setsuna said apologetically.

Yue felt like she was red all over. Whether it was from embarrassment or rage she couldn't tell. Negi tended to be clueless about how girls felt about him at the best of times and now he was going to be thinking she was involved with his best friend. Yue could practically see the label on Negi's forehead reading 'Property of Nodoka'.

Unfortunately things were just beginning to get worse for Yue. Kotaro, who was normally a bit slow on the uptake, was just starting to speak. "Wait, you mean you didn't come here to…"

Yue would probably regret her decision for the rest of her life, but she had no choice. If Kotaro said anything more she was going to be discovered for sure, so she did the only thing she could think to do. She grabbed his face in her hands and muffled his voice with a kiss. Kotaro was about as shocked as she was the first time when he had kissed her. Yue held him there for a moment and then released him.

"We'll talk later." Yue promised stepping away from his embrace. She then walked over to Negi. "I'll meet you after school."

Kotaro just stood there slack jawed, and nodded dumbly. Yue could almost cry. The boy was destroying her hopes of ever winning Negi away from Nodoka and she was playing right into it.

Negi nodded to Kotaro and then led the way back towards their class. Yue followed in silence, her two friends walking silently beside her. She didn't know exactly how to feel at the moment. Could Kotaro really be in love with her? He must be or else he wouldn't have just walked up and kissed her like that.

Yue stood back and looked at herself critically. Her heart was racing and she felt scared and exhilarated all at the same time. It was just like the time when…

Yue almost tripped over her own feet. It was just like how she felt when the clone of Negi had nearly kissed her. Yue suddenly wasn't feeling so good. Could she _really_ be developing feelings for Kotaro? If she was then it was nothing more than infatuation, but then that's what she'd told herself about Negi too. She was only feeling the way she did because he was the first boy to notice her. Well, his clone had been the first one to notice her. Now it appeared that the _real_ Negi was no closer to noticing her and Kotaro WAS. Why did life have to get so complicated?

* * *

Kotaro brought his hands up to his lips after the four of them had left. Kotaro might not be the brightest star in the heavens, but he wasn't exactly stupid either. After seeing the reactions of Negi and the girls it began to dawn on him that Kaede _might_ not have understood his intentions toward Yue.

If she had given him advice thinking that…

Kotaro suddenly wasn't feeling so good. He had kissed Yue… on the mouth… twice. Here he was standing there in cool looking clothes like he was ready for a… oh no, _that's_ why Kaede had called it a date. She thought he was pursuing Yue!

Of all the stupid ideas, like he could ever be involved with someone so… so… A million thoughts seemed to die in Kotaro's mind as he searched for some suitably horrible word. The only one that kept jumping up no matter how many times he tried to beat it down though was… warm.

For as long as he could remember he'd been alone in the world. He'd spent countless nights alone sleeping in forests or in the rare bed he could find. It was a miracle he was as civilized as he was. But for the first time two nights ago he'd been something he'd never been before. He'd been warm.

It was hard to explain, because he'd felt warmth, heat, fire, all of the things that made up the sensation, but Yue holding him close had made him feel funny. He felt like he was warm on the inside, and it was a new experience for him.

He'd felt it again a moment ago when he had held her up to keep her from falling. She'd almost seemed to melt into his arms. Then she had kissed him back. Could Yue actually feel something for him?

Kotaro tried to wrap his mind around the concept and failed miserably. How could she ever see anything in him? They were too different. Kotaro didn't consider himself stupid, but Yue was so intellectual and complex while he was such a simple person.

Still she had kissed him back and told him that she would talk to him later. She actually _wanted_ to talk to him for a change. Kotaro was suddenly wondering what in the world was he going to say to Yue when he saw her after school. He had absolutely NO idea what he was going to say to her now. If she really did love him, then…

Kotaro sighed and walked out of the basement with his head aching from the effort of trying to think of what he was going to say to Yue. Why did life have to get so complicated?

* * *

"How in the world was Kotaro able to skip class like that too?" Negi said to himself as he walked through the halls towards his classroom.

"He probably used a copy of himself." Kaede said offhandedly.

"Wait a minute. Now that you mention it, you were there this morning when I took the roll." Negi said suspiciously.

"Yes, I made a copy of myself and then I went to help Kotaro on his date with Yue." Kaede said guiltily.

"It wasn't _really_ a date." Yue said slowly.

"More like a tryst." Setsuna agreed.

"I can do without the vocabulary lesson." Yue said flatly.

"Yeah, that's my job." Negi said looking over at the two of them. "What I don't understand is how you were able to substitute a clone, and yet I didn't sense anything and yet I _was_ able to sense Yue's paper double."

"It was because she was using chi." Setsuna offered. "Normally you wouldn't be able to sense paper doubles either as long as you remember to cover the magic with chi so that it's undetectable."

Setsuna looked at Negi. Negi knew his look was probably quite irate at that moment as she suddenly slapped her own forehead. "Not that I have ever done it sensei!"

"Just how many different ways have you girls figured out for using magic to skip my class?" Negi asked hotly.

"Eva uses illusions." Setsuna said slowly. She was hanging her head.

"At least SHE knows how to speak English!" Negi said hotly. "So EXACTLY how often are we talking about?"

"Not that often!" Kaede said miserably.

"Only when Mana and I have an important job to do." Setsuna confessed.

"Mana too?" Negi asked incensed. "How many of you girls are actually IN my class on a given day? How many of you have been skipping? Confess now or I swear I'm going to give you a test so hard that you'll ALL be in the Baka Rangers!"

"Hakase uses a hologram." Kaede admitted.

"Chao used an android look-alike." Setsuna continued.

Negi glowered at his girls and wondered what to do next. Finally he just sighed. "That's it, no more skipping. If you have important jobs to do that are cleared by the headmaster then bring me a note explaining your absence. From now on I'm going to use my magic to make sure none of you girls are loose and around campus when you should be studying."

Negi was fit to be tied. He was definitely going to have to have a talk with Mana and Hakase. He had always wondered where Chao had found time for building such a large robot army. Apparently, now he knew. Several rather nasty test questions came to mind as he brooded on his way back to the classroom. As he neared it he could hear the girls chatting inside and it was apparent not a lot of studying was going on.

Negi stalked up to the door. He already had his magic prepared as he hit the trip wire. Suction arrows flew through the air only to be caught in his palm and he deftly caught the bucket before it hit the ground. He sat the offending items on the ground and then motioned for Yue and Setsuna. The two came into the class and quickly took their seats.

"Kaede-san, can I see you in the hall for a moment?" Negi asked.

The clone nodded and joined him in the hall. Kaede dismissed her clone and then went back to her seat. Negi was just about to re-enter the room when he stopped. Shizuna-sensei came walking down the hall towards his classroom and her face did not look pleasant.

"Is something wrong, Shizuna-sensei?" Negi asked alarmed.

"Negi-sensei, the headmaster wishes to see you immediately. He says it is very urgent." Shizuna said worriedly.

"What is it about?" Negi asked getting more worried by the moment.

"I don't know. He hasn't told me, and that is rather unusual." Shizuna confessed.

"Alright." Negi turned to his class. "Change of plans girls. I have to meet with the headmaster. I want all of you to write me a paragraph, in English, explaining the passage you just read. Please give it to Shizuna-sensei before you leave."

The accumulated groan rose from the class as Negi quietly shut the door and headed towards the headmaster's office. There were times when Negi really hated being slightly psychic. It was the worst of both worlds. You always knew when something bad was about to happen, but you had no more idea _what_ was going to happen than anyone else.


	5. Discussing

**A/N: I do not own Negima. The best I can lay claim to is higher than average amount of Negima merchandise and novels.**

**Chapter 5) Discussing**

Negi stepped into the headmaster's office and looked around. The headmaster was alone looking out the window at the sunny day that was single-handedly destroying the will to study in most of the students.

Negi politely cleared his throat to announce his arrival, but the headmaster did not speak.

Negi was about to say something when the old man finally began talking. "It is highly irregular for anyone to interfere in a mage's training."

"Sir?" Negi said in confusion.

"Your grandfather." The headmaster said vaguely. "He has sent word that he wishes for you to be sent home immediately."

"Home?" Negi said incredulously. "But my duties here, how could I just up and leave? I mean, I _was_ planning to go home anyway over the break."

"That was my point exactly. No one in the mage world has the power to change or end a mage's training period without justification. Your grandfather however appears to be doing all that he can to do just that." The headmaster said sourly settling down at his desk.

"I can't go home right now!" Negi exclaimed in shock. "Headmaster you can't allow…"

"Don't worry Negi-kun. I have no intention of acceding to your grandfather's demands, but he apparently has the ear of some high level officials. It is going to be difficult to refuse." The headmaster said staring at the boy.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Negi asked desperately.

"I don't know. Perhaps you can tell me why your grandfather seems so angry. I believe his exact words were that he wished to bring you home 'before you could disgrace the Springfield name even further'." The headmaster said staring intently at Negi for an answer.

Negi sighed. In all honesty he should have seen it coming. "It's probably because of my provisional contracts; grandfather was opposed to the idea of me getting a partner before I was fifteen."

The headmaster nodded sagely and looked down at the papers on his desk. "I see. I must say that I'm not overly surprised. Your grandfather certainly had a time with your father."

"He did?" Negi asked in confusion.

"Yes, Nagi was quite the lady's man when he was younger. Your grandfather disapproved quite strongly of your father's "activities"." The headmaster said delicately.

"So father had a bunch of partners?" Negi asked.

"In a manner of speaking…" The headmaster said vaguely, looking uncomfortable. "The point is; I think that you might be catching the fallout from a father/son war that was fought before you were born."

"So what do I do?" Negi asked desperately.

"Well, I've been thinking, and it seems that I have no choice but to agree with your grandfather's request for you to come home." The headmaster said slowly.

Negi began to object, but the headmaster beat him to the punch. "I'm not going remove you from the teaching staff however. The girls have needed the chance to experience the world, and this presents a golden opportunity. I am going to send your class with you to Wales."

Negi looked at the old man in shock. "We're going to be studying abroad?"

"Precisely." The headmaster affirmed. "From what I recall, your grandfather has a large estate with plenty of room to accommodate the girls and I can probably even arrange to have him charged for the air fare, since this was his idea."

"_He'll go spare_!" Negi exclaimed, lapsing into English.

"Quite probably." The headmaster said proudly. "If he tires of so many young girls around his home, then I suppose he could always send you back."

Negi slowly grinned. "That's just evil."

"I've been playing chess with Evangeline too much I suppose." The headmaster replied smiling.

"Speaking of Evangeline, what is she going to do while we're gone?" Negi queried curiously.

"Actually, since there is still the possibility that some rogue mage might try to snatch Konoka, I'm going to send Evangeline to help you in protecting the girls." The headmaster said getting up from his desk.

"But how is Evangeline supposed to leave the school grounds?" Negi asked in confusion as the headmaster walked over to a table next to his desk that had something with a cloth draped over it. "The last time you had to stamp about a thousand permission slips to allow her to go to Kyoto."

"One thousand, four hundred, and sixty three to be precise." The headmaster said massaging his wrist. "This time however I have everything under control. Since I thought it might become necessary to send Evangeline out again I ordered this off the internet."

Negi watched as the headmaster pulled the cloth away with a flourish. "This is my… new… STAMPING MACHINE!" The headmaster said with a manic grin while throwing Negi a huge thumbs-up. "With this I'll be able to send Evangeline with you and still be able to lead a normal life. I can load about a thousand sheets into this baby and keep it running for as long as I need to."

"I feel sorry for the rain forests." Negi said sadly.

"Yeah, try not to use too much oxygen for a while." The headmaster agreed. "Anyway, I'll make the necessary arrangements to guarantee your grandfather's apoplectic fit. You inform the girls. Also, I'm going to send Kotaro with you as well. You might need some more back up."

"Are you expecting trouble?" Negi asked.

"Not unless I send Kotaro. Your grandfather still has a cat I presume." The headmaster said smiling.

"Are you intentionally trying to make me an orphan?" Negi asked flatly.

"It would definitely make my job easier." The headmaster replied with aplomb. "Anyway, take care, dismissed."

Negi left the office and walked through the corridors in stunned silence. His grandfather tended to be a bit harsh, but interfering with his training was a bit much even for him. He had no idea how he was going to manage to teach the girls in Wales, but hopefully he'd think of something.

Shizuna was standing outside the classroom as he approached. It was near the end of the period and she was looking quite concerned. "Is everything alright, Negi-kun?"

"Yes, I just got some news from the headmaster is all." Negi said trying to mask his discomfort with a fake smile.

"What was it he wanted?" Shizuna asked politely.

"It seems my grandfather has made a rather forceful request that I return home to Wales. Since I still have teaching duties, the headmaster has decided that the class should go with me and take the opportunity to study abroad." Negi said seriously.

"Studying abroad?" Shizuna asked excitedly. It was then that Negi noticed something, or rather two things.

"Asakura, why are you impersonating Shizuna again?" Negi asked flatly.

Asakura grinned and pulled off the wig. "We all finished and Shizuna-sensei took the papers and left. We were curious about what it was the headmaster wanted from you is all. Why is your grandfather calling you home, anyway?"

"Well, it seems he's pretty upset concerning my decisions regarding choosing a partner. If I know him, he's probably going to choose one for me." Negi said miserably.

"Negi's grandfather is going to pick a wife for him!" Makie shouted as she threw open the door. This caused a large portion of the class to fall out onto the hall floor.

"He must be going to choose one of us for Negi's partner!" Fuka exclaimed excitedly.

"It must be, since we're going to Wales too!" Fumika replied.

"An arranged marriage with Negi… sensei…" Ayaka managed before fainting.

Negi sighed. It was going to be a long trip.

* * *

Yue grimaced as the small entourage followed her back towards the dorms. It was only a matter of time. Kaede, Ku Fei, and Asuna were walking back with her to the dorms after the usual Baka Ranger meeting with their sensei after class. It was her rotten luck that Konoka, Nodoka, and Haruna had waited for them too. Pretty soon Kaede was going to say something and it was going to be all over. Haruna would hear she had kissed Kotaro and the whole situation was going to explode.

An idea struck Yue then that just might work. Negi wasn't here so if she told the girls what she'd really been doing there, she might escape the embarrassment of having them hang around when she went to meet Kotaro.

"Girls, I have something I need to tell you before Kaede does." Yue stated seriously.

"It's okay, Yue-dono. I wasn't going to spill your secret." Kaede said smiling.

"It isn't a secret Kaede, at least not from you girls." Yue said, immediately wishing she'd chosen better words.

"A secret, what kind of secret?" Haruna said perking up immediately.

"Yue-dono is in love with Kotaro-kun." Kaede blurted out before Yue could stop her. As expected the conversation went completely out of control from that point forward.

"Yue! Why didn't you tell me?" Haruna shouted.

"There wasn't anything to tell…" Yue started trying to interrupt the chaos.

"Yeah, she only just kissed him this morning!" Kaede supplied happily.

"You kissed Kotaro-kun?" Nodoka said in shock looking at Yue strangely.

"Three times, at lest that's what Setsuna told me." Konoka answered.

"Wait girls, that's not the secret I was talking about…" Yue said in a strangled voice trying to break in.

"You mean you really DID sleep with Kotaro during the camp out?!" Nodoka exclaimed.

"No… yes… will you please just let me explain everything?!" Yue shouted.

"You slept with Kotaro?!" Haruna said stunned.

"So _that's_ where Kotaro-kun spent the night." Kaede said seriously. Ku Fei only nodded sagely.

Yue was nearly in tears. "You guys aren't listening…"

"So where were you during all this? You two were supposed to be sharing a tent!" Haruna accused Nodoka.

"Sleeping with sensei." Ku Fei said jealously.

"You slept with Negi-kun?!" Haruna said turning on Nodoka.

"It's not like that, nothing happened with either of us!" Nodoka said blushing and holding up her hands defensively.

"You expect us to believe that?" Haruna said badgering the librarian.

"Well, she _was_ clothed." Asuna said coming to the girl's defense.

"What about Yue?" Haruna said with that deadly gleam in her eyes she got when she was looking for juicy gossip.

Haruna turned to Nodoka and Yue who were both blushing furiously. Yue struggled to speak. "Well you see it was…"

"You were naked?!" Haruna asked gaping.

"WILL YOU GIRLS PLEASE LISTEN TO ME FOR A MINUTE!" Yue shouted at the top of her lungs. All the girls looked at her in shock as Yue displayed on of her rare take-charge 'Baka Leader' moments.

"I have a different secret I want to talk about. I'll get to it in a moment, but first I'm going to set you all straight concerning me and Kotaro. I am NOT in love with Kotaro. He and I slept with each other because he didn't have a place to sleep when Nodoka went to sleep in Negi's tent. The reason we were both naked was because we got rained on and I didn't have anything else to wear." Yue explained.

"But you always pack extra underwear…" Haruna started.

"Shut up! I forgot, alright?" Yue snapped at her friend hotly.

"But you were kissing Kotaro this morning…" Kaede continued.

"I'm getting to that." Yue said hotly. "What happened this morning was a misunderstanding. The reason I took Kotaro down into that abandoned basement has to do with the secret I'm about to tell you. I stole the vial that holds those three slimes from sensei's room and summoned them. I needed Kotaro to protect me while I cast the spell to enslave them. Afterwards, he kissed me. I didn't ask him to, he just did it. When you guys came into the basement in the middle of it, I had to make up an excuse as to why we were down there or else Negi would have been angry. If you don't believe me then you can come back to our room, that's where I stashed the slimes."

The girls were silent for a moment as they mulled over what Yue had told them. Yue noticed that Kaede and Ku Fei didn't look happy. "What's wrong?"

"Kotaro _does_ like you." Ku Fei said seriously.

"After the night you two spent together, Kotaro came to us and asked us how to approach you. The kiss was our suggestion." Kaede continued. "He thought that the two of you were meeting for breakfast. He most likely took the opportunity to let you know how he felt the only way he could, and that was to kiss you."

Yue gulped. Kotaro really _did_ like her? She was going to have to do some serious self analysis after this. "So what are you trying to say?"

"You should be careful how you treat Kotaro. He has even less experience with girls than Negi-sensei. We feel kind of responsible for setting him up with you, and we don't want to see him get hurt." Kaede said seriously.

"I'm supposed to see him later; I was going to explain everything." Yue said, thinking out loud.

"Great! We'll come along and help!" Haruna stated confidently.

"No." Konoka said seriously.

Everyone turned to the girl in surprise. Haruna was more shocked than anyone else. "What?"

"This situation with Kotaro is going to be delicate. If Yue doesn't feel anything for him she's going to have to let him down gently. If we get involved we're just going to mess everything up. We need to let her do it alone." Konoka explained.

All the girls nodded somberly. Yue could have kissed the girl on the spot, even if it did make Setsuna jealous. "Thanks girls, I'm going to go find Kotaro right now and put a stop to this."

Yue ran off towards the dorms to get changed and go find Kotaro. Things were finally getting straightened out.

* * *

"Did you smell it?" Konoka asked after Yue had darted away.

"Sure did." Haruna said watching the girl as well.

"I think she likes him too, at least a little." Kaede stated.

"She'll never admit it to herself though." Asuna supplied.

"We agree not to interfere." Ku Fei pointed out.

"We can still go watch though." Nodoka offered. May God forgive her, she hoped above all else that Yue really was falling for Kotaro. It would make things easier between the two of them. If both of them loved Negi-sensei…

"As long as we only watch…" Haruna started, looking at Konoka.

"It's not like we'd be interfering…" Konoka said smiling.

"I can make sure we won't be seen…" Kaede said beginning to grin like the rest of them.

"And I'll find out _exactly_ what they think of each other." Nodoka said pulling out her book.

"Should we _really_ be doing this?" Asuna asked uneasily.

"We promised not to interfere, _this_ time." Haruna said smartly. "But if there actually is something between the two of them, they might mess it up themselves. The two of them have the combined romantic experience of your average lump of coal. It would be a grave disservice to let that happen."

Nodoka smiled as the rest of the girls murmured their assent. For once, it was going to be Nodoka's turn to spy on one of her friend's love life. If there was a chance to set up Yue with someone who loved her, it would make Nodoka's life a _lot_ easier.

* * *

Yue changed quickly into the first thing she pulled out of the closet and then checked on her new 'pets'. The three slimes were splashing around in the tub enjoying the water and happy to be free of the bottle. Yue left them to their play and instructed them not to bother anyone before she returned and then set out to find Kotaro.

It was late in the evening when she finally found the boy in the park near the boy's dorms. He was still wearing the slacks and dress shirt that Kaede had dressed him in from the morning with his familiar jacket thrown over his shoulder. He was sitting watching the sky as some birds were valiantly trying to knock each other out of the sky in some sort of barbaric mating ritual as they competed for a female.

The pollen count was up, and Yue was certain her sinuses were going to be killing her tomorrow. Her eyes were even watering. They were near the building where the music department was housed and she could hear the faint wailing of someone trying to learn how to play the violin. Yue squared her shoulders and prepared to get this over with.

* * *

Kotaro sat in the park and waited. This was one of his favorite places. The wind was cool as he watched the setting sun as birds frolicked overhead. The pleasant smell of flowers was in the air from the gardens that the school planted here, and one could sit and listen as people would practice their playing in the music department.

Kotaro was listening to a particularly soft piece being played when he turned to see Yue standing there. She was dressed in a beautiful lavender dress, and her eyes were misty as she looked at him seriously. Could his kiss really have caused her to fall in love with him?

Kotaro had to admit she looked beautiful, and he felt the warm feeling spread through him like the night they'd stayed together. _Please don't let me be blushing._ Kotaro thought.

* * *

"He's blushing." Kaede announced from the tree above them.

Nodoka looked at her book and nearly cried. It was such a romantic scene and there was Yue walking right into it. Obviously, Kotaro was in love with Yue. Nodoka continued to read with everyone looking over her shoulder.

_The way she kissed me, it felt really nice. Maybe Kaede's advice was for the best after all. I just wish I knew what to say to her._ Nodoka read from her book as she watched Kotaro.

"That clinches it." Haruna stated.

"We still haven't used the book on Yue yet." Asuna said jumping in. "Remember if she doesn't feel anything for him we can't get involved."

Nodoka nodded and quietly spoke Yue's name. The pages shifted to show things from Yue's perspective.

* * *

Yue sat down on the bench next to Kotaro. She couldn't really think of what to say, and she really needed to say something. She shivered briefly from the cold wind that passed over her. When warmth surrounded her, she looked up to see Kotaro's jacket draped over her shoulders.

"You looked cold." Kotaro said sheepishly.

Yue could feel the warmth creep up to her cheeks. The feeling returned from the morning when he had kissed her. Could she really have feelings for him? Yue wondered. She remembered the feelings she'd experienced when the clone of Negi had tried to kiss her during the field trip. Was she really feeling something for Kotaro?

* * *

"He's put his jacket around her." Kaede reported dutifully.

"What a gentleman." Konoka said starry eyed.

"Maybe Negi _is_ rubbing off on him." Asuna agreed.

Nodoka merely watched the book while everyone else peeked out from the bushes to watch the couple. She was more interested in her best friend's thoughts than what the scene looked like from the outside.

_Can I really be in love? When Negi's clone nearly kissed me on the field trip I felt a lot like this. Is this infatuation because a boy is paying attention to me? How can I know?_ Nodoka read as she watched Yue torn by indecision. If she let Yue go, she'd tear this thing with Kotaro to shreds before it ever got started. Nodoka hated to admit it, but yes, she was being selfish. She wanted Yue to be happy… with someone else.

"So what is she thinking Nodoka?" Haruna asked from the bushes. "Right now the two of them are just sort of sitting there looking uncomfortable."

"She's confused." Nodoka said honestly. "She doesn't know what she feels."

"Typical." Ku Fei muttered.

"What do we do?" Kaede said poking her head out of the tree above them.

Finally, Nodoka made a decision as she closed the book. She was going to do for Yue what Yue had done for her. She had to get her to explore this relationship. Otherwise, she'd crush Kotaro's hopes and be back to pursuing Negi. Nodoka hoped Yue could forgive her for this, but she was going to have to make sure. "_We_ do nothing, but _I_ owe Yue one."

* * *

Yue struggled for something to say. She wanted to let the boy down easily, but was a little uncertain as to how to do it. Kotaro looked equally uncomfortable. She'd best end this soon.

Before she could speak, the music stopped and Kotaro stood. He stepped in front of her and offered her his hand. "It's getting cold out here. Have you eaten yet?"

"Uh, no." Yue said weakly. Her growling stomach reminded her she hadn't eaten much at lunch.

"Well, here. Why don't we go get something to eat and we'll talk about what happened this morning like rational people. Not a date, but just as friends okay?" Kotaro said looking down at her.

Yue was more relieved than she could have possibly put into words. She smiled and nodded and got up to go with the boy. As she stood up and went to step forward something snagged her leg and she fell forward. She opened her mouth to yelp, but suddenly she realized she was falling toward Kotaro.

Kotaro for his part moved to catch the girl when the two of them fell together and their lips met. Yue stood there stunned in Kotaro's arms as the two of them kissed. Not a date? Here I am kissing this boy, wearing his jacket and about to go eat with him and discuss our relationship! How is this NOT a date! Yue thought frantically. Then the feeling hit her again, she felt the same as she had this morning and the same as when Negi had kissed her to perform the pactio. Only, this was a little different. It took her a moment to realize it, but this time something was missing. It was guilt. She didn't feel guilty kissing Kotaro, as she had kissing Negi.

"Uh, are you okay?" Kotaro said shakily. To Yue's embarrassment she realized she'd been standing there with her eyes closed. She looked up into his blushing face and hoped she wasn't blushing.

* * *

"They're both blushing." Kaede reported from the tree.

Asuna and Konoka pulled Nodoka back by her ankles from where she'd slid under the bush to be able to reach under the bench and trip Yue. Nodoka smiled, paybacks could be heaven too. Now with a little luck, Yue might give the relationship with Kotaro a chance and she could _really_ mark her off her list of rivals.

"Good job, Nodoka!" Haruna said appreciatively.

"All's fair in love and war." Nodoka quipped.

"Remind me not to get into a war with you." Konoka replied.

"Well, shall we go?" Kotaro said from the other side of the bush.

"Uh, sure." Yue was saying. From the direction of her voice, Nodoka was nearly certain that she had been looking back at the bushes and wondering. Nodoka said a silent prayer for forgiveness and hoped everything worked out all right between the two of them. The girls watched the young couple leave.

"Should we follow?" Haruna asked.

"No, we promised not to interfere." Nodoka reminded her. "The only reason I did that was to pay back Yue for tripping me during the lip scramble."

"So the reason you kissed Negi the first time was because she tripped you?" Asuna asked.

"Well, it made a convenient excuse." Nodoka said blushing. "I think if Yue had wanted to, she could have probably avoided kissing Kotaro just now too. But the truth is she didn't. From now on it's her relationship to deal with, and whether or not the two of them want to admit it, there _is_ a relationship there."

The other girls nodded smiling. They all decided not to press Yue for details. The less said the better. Nodoka was happy for her friend and once again hoped the best for her.

Nodoka turned to leave and noticed Kaede and Ku Fei once again giving her concerned looks. Before she could say anything though, the two of them turned and darted away.

"What's with them?" Nodoka asked Haruna.

"That my friend; is the look of two young women looking at a rival they're not sure they can beat." Haruna replied sagely.

"Are you kidding, each of them could turn me to a bloody pulp!" Nodoka cried.

"At which point, you'd end up in the infirmary with Negi by your side worrying over you. He'd also most likely be very upset with Kaede or Ku Fei for doing something like that. Believe me Nodoka, some fights can't be won with fists." Haruna replied knowingly.

Konoka was nodding heartily in agreement. "Seriously, don't ever let me get into a war with you."

**A/N: I don't really have anything to add, I just like author notes...**


	6. Greeting

**A/N: I do not own Negima. This chapter is mostly filler to set-up later chapters, but hopefully you'll find it amusing…**

**Chapter 6) Greeting**

_Just shoot me now._ Negi thought to himself again. It had been one of the worst trips of his young life. Ayaka had tried to charter a private flight for the class, which would have meant she could have had first class seating all to herself and a certain favorite teacher. However, the flight had already been arranged by his grandfather. Negi spent the trip surrounded by the girls as they all discussed how excited they were to be getting to see Wales.

"So your grandfather is going to choose your wife for you?" Fuka said leaning over the back of her seat to stare at Negi.

"That's not _exactly_ it." Negi said trying to explain.

"Are you a prince?" Fumika blurted.

Negi sat next to Kotaro and wished he were dangling from the wing of the plane. "No, I'm not a prince. I thought we cleared that up."

"But your grandfather lives in a castle, doesn't he?" Fuka pressed.

"Well, yes, but that doesn't mean…" Negi tried desperately.

"Then you're a prince." Fumika concluded.

"Prince of Fools, maybe." Kotaro snorted next to him.

"Stop it you two." Ayaka scolded from across the aisle. "Just because Negi-sensei's family owns a castle doesn't mean that he's a prince."

"Thank you class rep." The young teacher replied.

"It just means they're unimaginably wealthy." Ayaka finished.

"You're not helping." Negi said flatly.

"You DO have a lot of interesting… _antiques_." Eva pointed out from the seat behind him. "I've been wondering exactly where you acquired them."

"Here and there." Negi said evasively.

"So exactly _how_ wealthy is your grandfather, Negi?" Kotaro asked innocently.

Negi was about to reply when he noticed that for the first time since they'd taken off, the entire plane was oddly quiet. You could hear a pin drop, and Negi could practically feel the girls shifting in their seats to lean closer. Negi really didn't want to lie to the girls, but the truth wasn't going to make the trip easier.

"I really don't know. I've never seen his finances." Negi said slowly.

"But he does have servants doesn't he?" Ayaka asked slowly.

"Well, just Nana…" Negi began.

"Who's 'Nana'?" Kotaro interjected.

"Well, she's my grandfather's cook and maid, and she looked after me when Nekane and I would go to visit him." Negi admitted slowly.

"Wait a minute, are you telling me you had a _nanny_?" Kotaro said breaking out into laughter.

"There's nothing wrong with that!" Ayaka shot back. "Lots of wealthy, young, heirs have nannies. Why I myself had…"

"Did she tuck you in at night and sing you to sleep?" Kotaro asked pinching Negi's cheek.

"No she didn't." The boy lied slapping his hand away.

"That was apparently Nekane's job." Asuna shot back sourly from her seat next to Ayaka.

The poking and prodding about the Springfield family status continued until the plane landed. Negi wasn't looking forward to the rest of the trip any more than the plane ride. He valiantly attempted to keep his girls together as they gathered their bags and filtered onto the bus that was waiting for them.

It was finally late afternoon as the bus found its way onto the cobblestone road that wound its way up to Castle Springfield. Negi watched the looming structure grow larger as the bus neared it and a hush fell over the girls. He took the moment of quiet to confront his class.

"Alright girls, we're here. My grandfather will most likely come out to meet us personally, so please be nice…" He began as the girls suddenly leaped into a frenzy of activity.

Make-up cases started flying open and mirrors popped out all over the place as his class began preparing themselves to meet the man that they believed could set them up with a cute boy and a life of luxury.

Negi sighed and turned to Kotaro. The other boy just shook his head sadly and rolled his eyes.

"Hold the mirror still Yue!" Haruna said trying to apply lipstick.

"Haruna!" Nodoka exclaimed, aghast as she herself had a brush in her hair.

"You never know, Nodoka. Just in case…" Haruna said placating her companion.

"You girls make me sick." Ayaka scolded as she ran a brush through her own hair. "This isn't a competition."

"It's more like a war zone." Asuna agreed, handing her the mascara.

"So why are _you_ getting dolled up Asuna?" Kaede asked sweetly.

"I just want to make a good first impression okay?" Asuna shot back. In truth, Negi had to admit that she was fussing over her appearance less than most of the girls. Even Zazie was idly taking a lint roller to her uniform.

"There's a first time for everything I guess." Ayaka quipped.

When the bus, finally came to a stop, Negi lined his class up so that they could pass out the luggage, and assign rooms. He had just about gotten the girls to settle down when he heard the doors opening. The creak of the ancient oak door opening was a sound he could have done without. It sounded like a coffin in one of those old vampire movies.

Negi was looking at his class, and his class was looking behind his back with looks of awe and wonder.

Negi turned to look up at his grandfather. In his youth he had been one of the most impressive of men, at least according to his uncle. Nicholas Springfield still commanded respect with a gaze that seemed to pin you in place. Standing a good three inches taller than Takamichi, he was taller than anyone the girls were accustomed to seeing. He strode down the steps of the castle with his cane tucked under his arm. His silver hair looked more like the pelt of a wolf than the hair of a man. His neatly cropped beard and mustache gave him an air of deadly aristocracy. He looked like the kind of man who was accustomed to ordering 'off with his head'.

Negi bowed respectfully to his grandfather. "I'm here just as you requested, grandfather." He said in English.

"And not alone I see." Nicholas said flatly. His tone spoke volumes about his displeasure. "Konoe can be quite spiteful at times."

Negi didn't know exactly how to respond, but his grandfather spared him the trouble. "Well, let's meet these girls." His grandfather said in flawless Japanese.

"Ah, yes." Negi said quickly pulling out his roster. "I can take roll while we do it then."

"Number one, Sayo Aizaka is of course not here." Negi started.

"Actually, I'm right here sensei." Sayo said hovering near Asakura.

Negi only smiled and nodded, some of the girls were still a little uneasy with the idea of a class ghost and he didn't want to cause a stir. His grandfather likewise didn't say anything. However Negi felt his grandfather's magic reach out. Sayo jumped as if something had startled her, and Negi assumed she'd been greeted telepathically.

"Number two, Yuna Akashi." Negi introduced.

"A pleasure to meet you sir." Yuna said bowing politely.

Nicholas merely nodded to her and uttered a brief 'welcome' before following Negi further down the line.

"Number three, Kazumi Asakura." Negi continued.

Asakura tried her best at a curtsy that left a lot to be desired. To his credit, Nicholas said nothing and bowed politely in return.

"Number four, Yue Ayase."

Nicholas nodded to the girl as she bowed politely. However, before Negi could continue his grandfather stopped and turned to look down at Yue. "You are the granddaughter of Taizo-san I presume?"

Yue looked stunned and stuttered for a moment. "Y-Yes. Springfield-sama."

"No need or such formality, child. I knew your grandfather well. He was a contemporary of mine. You may call me Nicholas." Negi's grandfather said before rejoining him. Yue looked as shocked as Negi felt.

"Number five, Ako Izumi."

Nicholas nodded briefly. Ako seemed to be ready to faint at his grandfather's intimidating presence, but she finally seemed to muster her strength.

"Excuse me, Springfield-sama?" Ako blurted.

"Yes?" Nicholas said in a bored tone.

"I was wondering, how is Nagi?" Ako asked with a blush.

"How do you know Nagi?" Nicholas asked in surprise.

"Negi's cousin Nagi came to visit him during our school festival. I was hoping that I might get to see him while we were here." Ako said hopefully.

"He came to visit you?" Nicholas said turning to Negi. _What is this girl babbling about grandson? _Negi 'heard' reverberate through his mind.

_It's a long story grandfather, please just play along for now and I'll explain everything._ Negi replied back silently.

"I'm sorry child but Nagi isn't here. I haven't seen him in some time, but if you wish I will see what can be done to arrange for you to see him." Nicholas replied gently.

Ako let out an explosive breath and bowed deeply in appreciation_. Grandson, I suggest the explanation you are going to give me later be EXCEPTIONALLY good._ Negi heard in his mind.

Akira and Kakizaki were introduced without much problem, but then Negi got to the name he was dreading. "Number eight, Asuna Kagurazaka."

"Hello sir." Asuna said reaching out and grabbing Nicholas' hand. The old man recoiled from the girl's touch as if he'd been bitten. Negi looked at his grandfather in alarm, and Asuna reached out to help him, but he quickly stepped away from her.

"No, it's alright. It's just my arthritis." Nicholas explained quickly. He cradled his hand close to his chest and Negi could tell his grandfather was in a lot of pain.

"I am SO sorry sir." Asuna said bowing deeply in embarrassment.

"Oh, it's no harm done." Nicholas said nonchalantly. "I just have some inflammation every now and again."

Asuna stepped back into line and Negi hoped no more disasters occurred. Misora, Chachamaru, Madoka, and Ku Fei were introduced with little problem. Chachamaru did bring a rather startled look from Nicholas, and Negi was equally surprised when his grandfather greeted Ku Fei in Chinese.

"Number thirteen, Konoka Konoe."

"So you're Eishun's girl?" Nicholas said shortly.

"Yes sir." Konoka replied warmly.

"I see." Nicholas said seeming to consider the girl for a long time. It was hard to tell who was more uncomfortable with the way he was looking at the girl; Konoka, Setsuna, or Negi.

Negi continued with the introductions, making it through Haruna, Setsuna, Makie, and Sakurako.

"Number eighteen, Mana Tatsumiya." Negi said beginning to relax a little.

Mana said nothing but gave a slight bow. Nicholas however did something that surprised Negi. He warmly and tenderly pulled the girl into an embrace. "You might not remember me child, but I remember you. You will always be welcome beneath my roof." Nicholas said as if greeting a favorite granddaughter. It was the first time the Negi recalled seeing Mana surprised.

"How do you…" Negi began.

"Later grandson, there are others to greet." Nicholas said crisply.

"Uh, sure." The boy managed with only a minimal gulp.

Negi continued introducing everyone else in his class and was happy that things were nearly over until he reached the final few members. "And this is…"

"Evangeline A.K. McDowell, we've met before." Nicholas said with thinly veiled malevolence in his voice.

"Still interested in that rematch old man?" Eva said smartly.

"Any time, any where." Nicholas shot back with a scowl.

Negi looked around uneasily at the class with all the girls trying not to act like they were staring when they were in fact staring. "Uh grandfather…"

"You and I have unfinished business, child, but now is not the time or the place." Nicholas said gruffly. He then moved on to the next girl almost leaving Negi behind.

"Grandfather, this is number twenty seven Nodoka Miyazaki." Negi said wishing more than anything this were over.

Nicholas regarded the girl coldly as she stuttered a greeting and respectful bow. He didn't move and Negi was afraid he was going to say something. Instead he pulled out a photograph from his pocket and looked at it closely. He then glanced back to Nodoka before putting the thing back in his pocket. With a short crisp bow he moved away as Nodoka nearly collapsed with fright.

Negi finished the introductions, with Ayaka of course making a big scene and presenting his grandfather with a prodigious amount of flowers and a bust he was quite sure he hadn't seen on the bus anywhere.

Nicholas turned to regard the girls coldly and then noticed one other presence. "And who is this?"

"Oh, that's Kotaro, he's my friend." Negi explained.

"Rival." Kotaro shot back.

"Indeed." Nicholas said with a snort. It was all Negi could do to tackle Kotaro and clamp his hand over his mouth to keep him from saying something rude as his grandfather turned to walk back in. After he'd climbed a couple of steps he turned to face the girls.

"You are all no doubt wondering why I have summoned my grandson home. Some of you believe that I am getting ready to select on of you to be his bride. Some of you think that you are merely here to study abroad. I will tell you now that I have not decided what to do with my grandson. He is my last heir, and I will not have him bring disgrace upon this family by making foolish decisions without thinking things through first. If during your stay here I see that you young ladies are capable of carrying yourselves with dignity and grace, then it is entirely possible that I may indeed speak with your families about arranging an engagement to my grandson. Until that decision is made however I expect each of you to be on your best behavior here. Dinner will be in two hours and will be formal attire. I will meet you there." And with that, Nicholas walked into the castle leaving the class behind.

Negi was expecting an audible sigh of relief from his class when his grandfather left. He was also expecting their usual antic of being incapable of even the most trivial actions without chaos ensuing. He was even prepared for the snickering, fighting, betting, pinching, and overall mayhem his class usually indulged in. If anything he had grown accustomed to it and right now wished for it to remind him that his life was in its usual abnormal state. He was therefore totally unprepared for what happened next. Each of the girls quietly collected their things and went into the castle quietly and gracefully, like proper young ladies. He found he missed the chaos.

"What am I going to do Kotaro?" Negi asked his rival.

Kotaro however was not looking at him and was instead looking at the trees in the forest a short distance from the castle.

"Something wrong?" Negi asked.

"Uh, no. Not really. I just thought I saw something." The dog demon explained.

"Well, let's go eat then." The heir of the hour said as he picked up his bags.

* * *

The dark figure separated itself from the shadows of the wood as the last two entered the castle. It lingered for a moment considering what to do and then slipped away to its master.

* * *

"So did anybody else nearly wet themselves?" Yue asked as everyone filed into the changing room. It didn't take a genius to realize that the room assignments had separated all the girls who were magically aware from the rest of the class. The two divisions each shared a large changing room where they could change for dinner.

"It was just all the drinking you do." Misora assured her.

"Your knees didn't stop knocking the entire time." Haruna pointed out.

"So, you gulped when he looked at you." Misora shot back.

"Girls, please." Asuna scolded. "Just be thankful you didn't nearly crush his hand like I did." The girl said miserably.

Most of the girls nodded soberly. The last thing they wanted was to be embarrassed in front of Negi's grandfather.

"So what was the deal with you Mana?" Kaede asked the dark skinned gunslinger.

"I don't know." Mana said simply. "I have a couple of suspicions though."

"Well, clue us in already!" Haruna said as her hair twitched.

"It's not something, I'm comfortable discussing." Mana said as she continued to unpack, as if that ended the subject.

Nodoka, however, knew Haruna better than that. The girl would press ANYONE for details, far after any sane person's sense of self preservation would have told them to be quiet. Mana, however, remained firm and for the most part ignored the girl.

"It has to do with 'The Severing' doesn't it." Evangeline accused. The girls weren't quite accustomed to having her around as 'one of the girls'.

"What's 'The Severing'?" Yue asked. The way Evangeline said it made the other girls immediately interested and cautious.

"You girls are too naïve. So is that boy out there." Evangeline snorted. "In the old days, mages were a lot more paranoid lot than they are now. They were constantly plotting against each other. That's why 'The Severing' was built into the contracts for Ministra Magi. Mages were terrified of betrayal by their own Ministra, so they built in a safeguard."

"What kind of 'safeguard'?" Asuna asked warily.

"When two people are permanently bonded, as I was, their souls are merged." Mana said flatly without turning around. "When the mage you are bonded to dies, it takes part of your own soul too; most Ministra do not survive the process."

"Those that do often wish they had not. It destroys a part of you leaving an empty shell behind. You girls only have provisional contracts, so you've nothing to worry about, but you'd best consider carefully if you want to be Negi's one and only partner." Eva lectured.

"So you were a full Ministra Magi." Asuna asked softly.

Mana only nodded. "When he died, part of me died with him. I've never been able to feel emotions as fully as I did when I was younger. The pain of the severing is like nothing you can ever possibly imagine. Mages don't really know what to do with those of us who survive. I guess guilt weighs heavy on them for what their magic has done to us."

"So that's why Negi's grandfather was so nice to you?" Yue asked.

Mana shrugged. "I think I remember seeing a picture of him once. Unless I'm wrong he's the man that taught the mage I was bonded to. He might even have been the one to perform the ritual. I was quite young then, so I don't really remember."

The girls quietly watched as Mana got dressed. The girl had always appeared jaded, put to know that it was because she had suffered greatly because of magic shed an entirely new light on why she had been willing to assist Chao. Nodoka thought about it herself. The longer she stayed with Negi the more she was sure she always wanted him to be there. It might just be a silly romantic thought born of reading too many romance novels, but she couldn't imagine going on without him.

Mana's revelation quieted the girls significantly as they bathed and dressed for dinner. Each of them was lost in their own thoughts.

Nodoka had little time to wonder about much else before the girls all filed into the grand dining hall in the heart of the castle. A massive banquet table had been prepared, and servants all showed them to their seats. Nodoka noticed that all of Negi's partners were seated close to the head of the table, along with the other girls who were allied with him. Her own seat was the furthest from the head of the table, along with Evangeline who sat directly opposite to her.

As they girls came in, Negi joined them. He looked very worried as he had a seat at the right hand of where Nodoka assumed his grandfather would be sitting. Finally, the old mage himself entered dressed elegantly in a simple grey suit that you could probably have found in any men's clothing store in London.

"Ah, finally, please girls, be seated. The servants will be bringing out the meal directly." Nicholas said seating himself at the head of the table.

The girls all sat politely and watched as the servants brought out several trays of various small snacks.

"Magnificent, the starters are here." Nicholas noted mildly. "Now Negi, I think the explanation as to why this girl knows Nagi is now overdue."

"Uh grandfather, Ako doesn't…" Negi tried to say quietly.

"You can relax boy. The girls sitting anywhere past the Miyazaki girl won't hear what you say. I've laid a spell to keep our conversation disguised. They'll think we're talking about the weather or some such nonsense." Nicholas said as he unfolded his napkin.

Nodoka looked down at her plate. Something unrecognizable looked back at her. She looked up at Evangeline who was looking at her own plate hungrily.

"Uh, Eva-san? What are these?" Nodoka asked picking up the funny brown little objects.

"_These_," Eva said holding up her own appetizer, "are Cheese Puffs; Stilton, by the smell of them."

"Are they edible?" Nodoka asked dubiously.

"Magnificently so." Eva assured her sampling her own plate.

Nodoka turned her attention back to Negi who was just finishing his explanation to his grandfather about how Ako had come to know his older persona as Nagi. Nicholas did NOT look amused. "Great, so now I suppose I'm going to have to keep up this charade? Enough of this, I'll have news sent to her that Nagi was killed in an automobile accident."

"But grandfather; that will break her heart!" Negi exclaimed.

"And you were expecting to find some way to keep lying to the girl and NOT end up hurting her? When would you tell her the truth, after your first child is born? If you don't like my idea, then I suggest you find a way to break it off with her gently." Nicholas fumed at the boy.

"Yes grandfather, I will." Negi said meekly.

Nicholas finished his plate and it was quickly removed by a servant. Nodoka didn't dare to try the alien dish and covertly passed her portion to Eva who had polished off hers in record time.

Servants quickly removed any remaining dishes, several of which were still full, and replaced them with bowls of steaming soup. Nodoka looked down at her bowl and wondered to herself just exactly how many snacks she had tucked away in her luggage.

"Cream of barley with dill, I haven't had this in ages." Eva practically squealed as she sipped at the soup that was offered to her.

Nodoka took her spoon and tried the strange dish. She decided it tasted like one of Yue's drinks, after she'd relieved herself of it in the toilet and let it sit for a couple of weeks.

Nodoka looked up at the girl with the iron clad stomach to see she had already finished her soup. She was now looking at Nicholas like she wanted to speak but was too afraid.

"You have something on your mind child, speak it. I'll not loose sleep tonight wondering what you would have said." Nicholas said between sips at his own bowl.

"You said you knew my grandfather…" Yue started.

"Yes, I knew him well. He and I used to have some stirring debates on the rare occasions that I would visit Japan. He was quite the philosopher, and one of the more accomplished mages that I've had the pleasure of working with." Nicholas said nodding.

"My grandfather was a mage?" Yue said in absolute shock.

"Yes, you mean you didn't know?" Nicholas said with some surprise. "Seeing you in Negi's class I assumed you knew." Yue merely shook her head in stunned silence.

"Your grandfather was quite an accomplished user of Eastern magic. He even showed me a few of his simpler tricks. I imagine it was one of the reasons you were selected for Negi's class." Nicholas continued.

"I was selected?" Yue asked suddenly.

"Yes, all of you were." Nicholas said sourly as he wiped his lips with his napkin and motioned for the servants to remove his half eaten soup. "All the girls in Negi's class were selected for several different traits which might be found useful in a Ministra Magi. It was something his father arranged, and that I strongly disapproved of. Takamichi gathered the lot of you girls together two years ago for the express purpose of presenting Negi with candidates for his Ministra. I believe it was his father's idea long ago."

Yue seemed to still be distracted. "My grandfather was ALSO a mage."

Nicholas merely rolled his eyes. "Of course girl, you didn't think he managed to make enough money to support a family on the lecturing circuit for philosophy did you? You'd be surprised how many of histories greatest philosophers were also men of magic; Socrates, Galileo, Aristotle, Da Vinci, all of them."

"Da Vinci was over-rated." Eva piped in.

"Let's see YOU draw a perfect circle then." Nicholas shot back.

"I have to admit that, I suspected something along those lines." Setsuna said slowly. "But there are some in our class which I KNOW have no prior exposure to magic."

"Well, yes, there weren't enough candidates that had magical potential to fill an entire class, so Takamichi branched out and included girls with incredible skills in combat," he said waving to Kaede, "athleticism", he said waving to Makie, "wealth", he said waving to Ayaka, "along with the girls with intelligence." He said finally waving in Hakase's direction.

"But what about the other girls like Fuka and Fumika?" Setsuna asked. "They don't have enough skill to seriously be considered as Ministra Magi, and it would be too dangerous for girls like them."

"Well, some of the girls were selected in order to give Negi practice at keeping his magic secret in society. They were selected, shall we say, for their ability to be 'mentally rehabilitated' easily." Nicholas explained.

"So I chosen because I good fighter?" Ku Fei asked.

"You child are the best of both worlds." Nicholas said flatly sipping his tea.

Ku Fei sat up straighter and beamed as if given a great compliment. Everyone else just politely looked away and studied the next course as it was being served. Nodoka was quickly considering vegetarianism as the main meal was served. Eva was practically drooling.

"What is that?" Makie was saying from somewhere down the table.

"_That_ girls, is called 'kedgeree', and is a dish I have missed greatly." Evangeline said sampling the concoction. Some of the more adventurous girls tried the dishes set before them while most, like Nodoka, merely picked at their food. Nodoka looked to her left at Ayaka who was just across the magical 'line of demarcation' which kept the discussions about magical topics from being noticed. She was politely eating her dish with practiced grace. If she didn't like it, she wasn't about to let it show.

After the meal was removed, the servants brought out small bowls of sorbet. The girls' eyes lit up as the bowl were placed in front of them, and for once everyone at the table was eating.

_"Negi-sensei must have been being modest when he said that you did not keep many servants Lord Springfield."_ Ayaka said with measured grace in English, her accent still heavy. Across the table, Nodoka heard Eva snort.

"You may speak Japanese here child. I am fully fluent in your language and it would be rude to not include the other girls in the conversation. Yes, I normally do not require many servants. Abigail is more than capable of meeting my needs while I am here alone, and Nekane's as well when she comes to visit." Nicholas said sipping more tea.

"Will Nekane be visiting while we're here?" Negi asked hopefully.

For once Nicholas smiled broadly. "Yes, she'll be here tomorrow. She has some business to conduct in London and then she will be arriving tomorrow afternoon, along with your other suitors."

"My what?" Negi asked, appalled.

"Yes, your other suitors, I've picked a few as well as Anya. She was a friend of yours in school and I have asked her to come. I am considering her as your partner as well." Nicholas replied.

"Grandfather!" Negi said coming to his feet.

"Sit down!" Nicholas managed to roar from his seat with a commanding voice that could stop an army dead in its tracks.

Negi quailed before his grandfather's intense glare and returned to his seat. Nicholas grunted and then returned to his tea. Nodoka gulped and found her appetite was quickly diminishing. She suddenly didn't have very much confidence competing for Negi's affections against someone who was a childhood friend and who apparently already had his grandfather's approval.

Ayaka and Makie had apparently already considered this as well, as they were exchanging troubled looks with each other as the next course was served. They were also concerned about the arrival of Anya, or possibly the funny looking dish set in front of them.

"Herring pie!" Eva squealed with delight. Most of the girls turned green after hearing that one.

"I suppose this is as good of a moment to announce my intentions as any." Nicholas said standing. "My intention as I stated before was to bring my grandson here and to determine someone to be his partner. There are two things therefore which I wish to have proven here during your stay. One, I want Negi to prove himself to be capable of protecting and caring for his partner. Second, I want you girls to prove yourselves as capable of _being_ his partner. To this end, in one week we are going to have a series of magical duels in which you girls are going to be fighting both alongside Negi and alone in order to prove these two points. I will make my determination based upon these results."

"Grandfather, if I may, if I prove myself capable of protecting and taking care of my partners, shouldn't it be _my_ decision whom I choose to be my partner?" Negi pointed out. Nodoka however was watching the reaction from the girls down the table as they began talking animatedly.

"Very well, grandson, prove yourself well enough and I will consider allowing you that opportunity." Nicholas agreed.

"Um, Springfield-sama?" Nodoka asked timidly.

"Yes, what is it?" Nicholas asked with annoyance.

"What did the rest of the class hear since your spell filters out mention of magic?" Nodoka asked as the rest of the class seemed to be buzzing with Nicholas' announcement.

Nicholas looked down the table, his brow furrowing. "Actually, I don't know. Something contextually appropriate I suppose. The spirits I left in charge of the spell would have picked something."

Ayaka was the first to speak, turning back to Nicholas. "Nicholas-sama, I believe a grand ball would be a wonderful idea, but none of us brought gowns suitable for such and occasion."

Nicholas rolled his eyes and slumped down in his seat heavily. "Well, I suppose I'll have to send for a seamstress then." Nicholas said in exasperation looking at the excited girls. "I better make that _several_ seamstresses."

"We're all going to look like princesses!" Fuka exclaimed happily.

"And Negi's our prince!" Fumika agreed.

Eva seemed to be enjoying herself immensely. She smiled back wickedly at Nicholas when she caught him scowling in her direction. "Don't look at me like that old man; you did it, not me. It'll be just like old times. Why, I think I might even throw my name into the hat."

"You can't be seriously…" Nicholas began in outrage.

"I'm _deadly_ serious." Eva said with a hint of malice in her voice. "I want out of my prison, and the only way I'm going to break the spell is either if Negi finds a way to break it, or if I drain his blood. I therefore have a vested interest in making sure you don't marry him off and take him away from Japan. I'm in on this little tournament of yours, and I'm going to make sure he wins."

"I think I might be losing control of the situation here." Nicholas groused.

"Quite the contrary." Negi assured him.

"You call _this_ under control?" Nicholas demanded.

"No, you simply have _no idea_ how much you've lost control of the situation. Welcome to my world by the way. Oh look, the shoulder of mutton with oysters has arrived." Negi said happily as someone else felt the sting of chaos which was his life. Nodoka began to feel sorry for Nicholas.

"I seem to have lost my appetite." Nicholas said gruffly as the meal was passed out, resulting in several members of the class doing the same. Nodoka thought becoming a vegetarian was becoming a better and better idea by the moment.

The rest of the meal passed in excited conversation as the girls talked about the upcoming ball that had been inadvertently scheduled by Nicholas Springfield. Things went fairly typical for the class for the rest of the evening, as in a barely subdued riot of young female activity.

Dessert was eventually brought which consisted of a clootie dumpling with jam and custard, which caused Makie no end of distress when she thought someone said it was a 'cootie'. Nodoka was just happy that the final course was simple cheddar cheese and crackers with tea so she could have at least _something_ other than the sorbet to fill her stomach before the girls finally retired to bed. If the evening had proven anything, it was that life was about to get VERY interesting.

**A/N: A quick note. I received an anonymous review from 'A Man With A Small Point' with an extremely well written, polite, articulate, and useful point of constructive criticism. If whoever this was reads this note, PLEASE send me a review that I may respond to. I make it a practice to respond to every review with which I am able to do so, and I believe such a beautifully written review deserves a response and open dialogue.**


	7. Acquainting

**A/N: Here's my latest chaper. I hope you guys like it. I'm not aware of any easter eggs in it, but if you find an inadvertent one, more power to you. As usual, I do not own Negima...**

**Chapter 7) Acquainting**

The week had settled into a steady rhythm within the Springfield family estate. The girls saw nothing of Nicholas, Nekane, or any of the other 'suitors' Nicholas mentioned, but they had little time to wonder. The girls had their studies to continue so during the day, they were taught by Negi in the large library within the castle. During the afternoons, the girls were measured and fitted for their dresses. That is, all the girls except Nodoka.

Nodoka's seamstress was a particularly unreliable young woman who was apparently new to the craft. After two days of being late and forgetting half of the measurements she was to take, the woman finally sent word that she would be unable to make her dress.

It was therefore Nodoka's bad luck to find herself without a dress for the ball only a couple of days before it was to be held. Nodoka stayed behind in the comfort of the library as the girls wandered out heading off to the final fitting before their dresses were to be completed. She knew that the ball was only being held because Nicholas was maintaining the illusion that the girls were there for him to choose a wife for Negi, but Nodoka had wanted to go just because it made her think of herself like Cinderella.

Unfortunately, while Nodoka had come to know about magic, she had yet to ever see a fairy godmother. She therefore sighed and set about doing one of the few things that took her mind off her troubles; looking at books.

The girls studied at two large oak tables that filled the main hall of the library, but Nodoka had seen that there was much more to the great hall than just the main area where they studied. She wandered the rows, looking at the titles, until she found a small door against one of the walls.

Not really knowing where it led, Nodoka peeked in. Inside it seemed to be a continuation of the main library, only with a much lower ceiling. She stepped in and looked around to find a small desk where any librarian might feel at home and wandered toward the welcoming place with a smile.

As she approached, Nodoka looked up to see a large painting hanging behind the desk with a black velvet shroud hanging over it. She moved towards the painting, wondering what it could be when a voice startled her.

"What are you doing in here, child?" A woman's voice asked behind her.

Nodoka jumped and spun around to find an elderly woman staring at her from the doorway. "I'm sorry; I thought this was part of the library."

"It isn't. This is the master's private study. You should not be in here." The portly woman said stepping into the room. The tall woman looked like she could put Shizuna-sensei to shame with her bust size.

"I'm sorry, I'll leave immediately." Nodoka said bowing and preparing to race for the door.

"What are you even doing here? I thought all the girls were being fitted for their dresses." The elderly woman demanded.

"I… don't have a dress. The lady making mine said that she wasn't going to be able to make it in time." Nodoka explained.

"I see." The old woman answered. "Tell me girl, what is your name?"

"Miyazaki Nodoka… I mean, Nodoka Miyazaki." Nodoka replied.

"Why did you change that around?" The woman asked.

"My people always put their family name first. I remembered that it was the opposite way for English names." Nodoka explained.

"I see, how odd." The matronly lady said as she stepped into the study and closed the door behind her.

"You seem fluent in my language. How is it that you didn't already know this?" Nodoka asked suspiciously.

"Who, me, Japanese? Bah, I can't speak a word of it. It's the magic of this place." The old woman said waving her hand to indicate the room in general before pulling out a feather duster and beginning to clean the immaculately kept books.

"How do you know about magic, or that I know about magic?" The librarian asked in confusion.

"A mundane wouldn't have been able to even SEE the door to this room, much less open it. There are too many dangerous volumes on these shelves to let just anyone enter." She said removing one of the 'dangerous' books from the shelf to remove a pen from between the pages. "I swear the man is more pig than human, hand me that bookmark on the desk there child."

Nodoka stifled a giggle and quickly obeyed the graying woman. "So are you the librarian here?"

"No, I'm the maid. I'm Abigail, but you can just call me Nana. That's what young master Negi calls me at least." The old woman said placing the bookmark and carefully replacing it on the shelves.

"I've heard him talk about you. Well, I better get out of here before Springfield-sama finds me here." Nodoka said timidly. "He'd probably wipe my memory and send me home if he did."

A pained look crossed the woman's face. "He isn't actually that bad you know; he just takes some getting used to. He's a creature of habit that one. He only comes in here during the early morning hours before you girls start class. He won't be back until the morning so stay here if you wish, I could use some help picking up after the old fool."

Nodoka couldn't help but smile. "Certainly, what would you like me to do?"

"Get those books off the desk and file them away for me." Nana said pointing to the cluttered desk.

"I thought they were dangerous." Nodoka said quietly as she approached the heavy volumes.

"The books aren't really; it's what's written inside them that will get you into trouble. Just put them away, you don't have to read them. Trust me, most of them won't bite." The grandmotherly woman said kindly.

Nodoka nodded and set about her task. The old woman continued to clean, every now and again shaking her head at the messy nature of the castle's primary occupant. "So what does the young master say about me child?"

"He remembers you fondly from his visits here with his cousin. He says you took care of him while he was here. Kotaro was teasing him for having a nanny." Nodoka replied looking down from the ladder where she was replacing one of the books.

The old woman chuckled as she worked. "He needs one. I swear the Springfield men can be some of the most helpless bunch in the world, magical or otherwise. It takes a special kind of woman to tame one of them."

"I know." Nodoka said to herself sadly.

"Why the long face child?" Nana asked.

"I've told Negi how I feel, and I even kissed him, but I don't know how he feels about me. Sometimes I wonder if he'll ever return my feelings." Nodoka said looking down at the elderly maid.

"That's a Springfield for you. They never have been able to explain how they feel very easily, rather stupid about it actually. They'll make a mess of more than just a study if you leave them to their own devices. I will give you this warning child, and only this one. Springfield men never grow up. Nagi never did, and I suspect Negi never will either. He'll go to his grave following innocent ideals without a thought in the world for what's going on around him. Even Nicholas, for all his bluster, carries on sometimes as if he were three, throwing tantrums when things don't go his way." The old woman said cynically.

Nodoka couldn't help but smile. "That's one of the things I love about him."

"Tantrums aren't supposed to be lovable." The old maid snapped.

"I meant Negi." Nodoka said smiling. "I know Springfield-sama doesn't seem to like me very much."

"Yes, I know." The old woman said sighing.

"Do you know why he doesn't like me?" Nodoka asked seriously.

"Well, to be honest, he doesn't think you've got what it takes to be a mage's companion. He's kept a close watch on Negi and hasn't exactly been thrilled that the two of you have gotten so close." Nana whispered conspiratorially.

"I see." Nodoka said sadly. Then something suddenly dawned on her. "So you mean he knows that I've kissed…"

"He has a picture of it in his desk over there. A particularly lovely one I might add, with all the fireworks in the background." Nana said nodding.

Nodoka gulped, that explained the picture Nicholas had looked at while they'd been introduced. She looked at the desk. She'd really like to see that picture herself. "How did he get a picture of us?"

"The master has magical spirits that he sends to look in on Negi from time to time. They create photographs of what they see and bring them back to the master. He spends a lot of time looking at them." Nana said conversationally. "Now enough of that, the two of us had better get to work."

"At what, the study looks spotless." Nodoka asked.

"On your dress child, Nicholas may not think you'd be any good for young master Negi, but I think I like you girl. You just might be what Negi needs in his life. Someone to keep his mind grounded. He might be a tidy young boy, but his mind is still as cluttered as they come." Nana said putting an arm around Nodoka and giving her a wink. "Nicholas dealt you a bad hand, and I'm not going to let him get away with it. I know a few things about Springfield men, and Negi in particular, that just might surprise you."

* * *

Yue was sitting in the chambers shared by all of Negi's partners and otherwise magically conscious young women in 3A when Nodoka slipped back into the room. All of the other girls except Eva had gone to bed long before, leaving Yue to wait up for Nodoka. Leave it to a vampire to be a night owl.

"Where have you been?" Yue demanded of the girl in a whisper to keep from waking the other girls. If she had slipped into Negi's bed again…

"Working." Nodoka replied yawning. "Nana said she'd help me get a dress ready for the ball."

"Oh, so that's where you've been." Yue commented in a relieved monotone.

"Yue, can you help me with something?" Nodoka asked seriously.

"Sure, anything…" Yue said taking a sip of her mango, tomato, and turnip juice.

"Can you go with me to break into Springfield-sama's study?" Nodoka asked eagerly.

The spray of juice against the far wall was going to leave a stain. "…but that. Are you NUTS?"

"Negi's grandfather has pictures of all of us with Negi and I want to see the one he has where Negi and I are kissing." Nodoka confided.

_Figures._ Yue thought. Nodoka would risk anything for Negi, but this was taking total leave of her senses. Still pictures of Negi _did _sound intriguing. "His study you say?"

"Yes, it's a magically disguised door in the library." Nodoka confided.

"I did notice a door like that in the library." Yue mused. "So that's where he keeps it?"

"Yes, so will you help?" The lovesick librarian asked.

"Oh, all right. Okay, I'll help. Just do me a favor, when everything goes wrong, don't let me forget to blame you for everything." The young philosophical mage apprentice instructed.

"Deal."

"Well let's get going, I don't intend to be up all night." Yue said seriously.

The two set out for the library. Yue had to admit it was just like old times. Normally, people didn't expect librarians to be athletic, but those people never visited Library Island. Yue and Nodoka had hiked, rappelled, done free climbing, and even camped in the massive structure. Yue had always imagined the library as a gateway into some sort of other realm, where books on geography were indeed the geography. Since coming to learn about magic she was beginning to suspect she was right.

The two explorers crept silently through the library toward their destination slipping quietly into the study. Yue looked around while Nodoka lit a single candle to light their way.

Yue squinted in the half light, looking up at the massive shelves which contained enough magic to probably level half a small city. The idea made her giddy. Behind the desk a painting draped in black velvet drew her attention.

"I wonder what this is?" Yue asked herself as she reached for the drape.

"Yue, I found it!" Nodoka announced.

Nodoka produced a small portfolio from the desk which she was pulling all sorts of pictures from. Yue left the drape to join her friend and look down at the portfolio. "What is all this?"

"These were made by Takamichi-sensei." Nodoka said with awe. There in front of the two of them was the detailed account of each girl which Takamichi had personally gathered to be in Negi's class. Transfer records, personal profiles, and even comments on each of the girls, including photographs stared back at them as a mute testimony of what looked like a task that had taken their former teacher ten years to complete. There were even photos of some of the girls when they were small preschoolers.

Yue gulped as she and Nodoka looked at the folder. They had all been chosen since Negi's birth to be in 3A. Apparently their classroom had even been decided upon in order to include Sayo. "Nodoka, turn to my profile."

Nodoka nodded and quickly flipped over to the section on Yue, which was strangely also arranged in the same order as their class roster. There, the two friends found pictures of Yue as a baby. Yue and Nodoka stared at each other and then noticed a letter sitting in the portfolio. With a trembling hand Yue lifted it up to read it.

_Dear Nagi,_

_I know your father doesn't agree with your decision, but I think what you are doing for Negi is a splendid idea considering that you will not be there to support him yourself. I have therefore decided to assist you as well. Enclosed are pictures of my own grandchild, Yue. While it is my sincere desire that she might grow to follow in my footsteps, I think it is best if she lives a normal life until it is time to introduce her to Negi. I will tell her of magic eventually, but I will have to prepare her first. Her mother after all is unaware of its existence. Whether as a teacher or partner, I am sure that she will learn much from being around your son. Oh, and when your father hears of this and throws his customary tantrum tell him I said 'You're Welcome.'_

_Taizo Ayase_

_P.S. – She certainly is a cute little thing, ne?_

Yue clutched the letter to her heart as tears welled up in her eyes. "And then grandfather died before he could tell me…"

"I'm certain he would be proud of you Yue." Nodoka said to her emotional friend, who was quickly pulling out her book. "What are you doing?"

"Looking up a copying spell, you want a copy of your picture too right?" Yue said seriously.

Nodoka beamed at her and she knew she was right as she flipped to the section on herself and retrieved the copy of the photograph that showed her kissing Negi with fireworks in the background.

"Nice shot." Yue said appreciatively with not a little envy.

"Nice memory." Nodoka agreed as her hand momentarily lifted to her lips.

The two quickly copied their treasures and were looking at the portfolio uncertainly. Inside, secrets about ALL the class were hidden. It was like having the entire past and possibly things about the future laid out before them.

"We should put it back." Yue said grudgingly.

"I guess you're right." Nodoka agreed putting it back slowly into the desk. Never, except when she'd held Chao's family genealogy, had she ever been more tempted to read.

Voices rising as they drew nearer brought the two out of their reverie. They quickly looked at each other, and then doused the candle before hiding under the desk. Crammed together, they huddled there like sardines hoping that whoever was coming wouldn't find them.

The light came on as the door burst open. The man's voice sounded angry, and they believed themselves doomed until they realized he wasn't talking to them and they were indeed not caught.

"I think this conversation is over." Nicholas said shortly as he stormed into the room.

"Don't you dare walk away from me old man!" Evangeline shot back as she pursued him into the room. "I'm telling you, Nagi is still alive. You should be happy."

"It is absolutely impossible I tell you. There is no way he could be alive and all you are doing is trying to torment me yet again, you heartless harridan!" Nicholas yelled back.

"Are we going to have to go through this again?" Evangeline said in exasperation. "This argument is getting older than I am."

"This 'argument' will not be over until the magic council finally manages to find a way to kill you and I'm given the privilege of doing the deed myself. Millions died because of you!" Nicholas growled.

"Like there isn't blood on your hands as well." The undying mage countered. "I don't see bags under _your_ eyes from loosing sleep though. Maybe if you had been a better teacher…"

"How DARE you!" Nicholas roared. "You corrupted and perverted an innocent boy and turned him against me and now you're doing the same to my grandson."

"I did nothing. You're losing your grandson because you're a bitter old fart who hasn't got the brains to realize how much you've hurt the boy with your callous and cold hearted treatment." Evangeline fumed back at the old man. "Even _I _wouldn't have done HALF of what you've done to him. Torment? What do YOU know about torment?"

"Foul temptress, how can you stand there and presume to lecture me on how to raise my grandson?" Nicholas said in disgust.

"Raising him? You call packing him away and never seeing him, raising him?" Eva sneered.

"Yes, I do. I've provided him with the best education that money can buy!" Nicholas shot back. "At least HE hasn't taken for granted all that I've offered him. One day he will make a fine Magister Magi and will lead this family as I have."

"So you want to make him as bitter and miserable as you are? How pathetic. I should drain the boy's blood now and do him a favor." Eva said haughtily.

"You've taken enough from me you demon!" Nicholas raged.

"I didn't take Nagi away from you! You pushed him away!" Eva screamed.

"He wasn't the one I was talking about." Nicholas said with a dangerous whisper.

"I didn't take him away either. Nicholas, I have held this secret for nearly a hundred years, for the sake of his memory, but I cannot hold it in any longer. Nicholas I LOVED Vincent; and I did NOT turn him towards evil. He was the one who betrayed those secrets to the Nazis." Evangeline shouted. Yue imagined she could hear tears welling up in her eyes.

"Liar! Don't make me laugh. What would _you _understand about love?" Nicholas replied, sneering.

"More than you apparently! I admit, when I first sought out Nagi it was to kill him so I could strike back at you. I hated you for killing Vincent, regardless of what he had done. I pleaded with him not to let them know, but he did it anyway. He betrayed my love, but still I loved him and it killed me for anyone to think him a traitor so I took the blame. I figured that I already had so much blood on my hands no one would ever doubt that I had been the one to give them the power they needed to take control and that Vincent was my unwitting pawn. I had hoped that it would have kept him alive, but no, you killed your own student for it." Evangeline accused the old mage.

"Vincent was a good boy, he would have never…" Nicholas shot back, but Yue could hear a tremor in his voice that betrayed his uncertainty.

"Then why did you kill him?" Eva demanded; certain she had him. "You knew didn't you… You knew he was the only one that could have done it, and it hurt you just as much as it did me for everyone to think that your precious pupil had betrayed the magic world and caused millions to die. That's why you're blaming me for Nagi too! It's so much easier for you to hide behind me and make me the villain than to face the truth that you were a terrible father. You pushed Nagi away and now you're doing the same thing to Negi!"

"Keep silent witch, you can't claim innocence with me, I know you too well." Nicholas fumed, his anger building again.

"I'm not claiming innocence. I'm pronouncing your guilt. Why else would you…" Evangeline started. A deathly silence hung over the room until finally she continued in a stunned voice. "You already knew Nagi was alive."

Neither of them said a word as the study became suddenly still. Yue and Nodoka looked at each other in wonder. This was a great deal more than they had been prepared for.

"You've known all along didn't you…" Eva quietly accused the father of the missing mage.

"Yes, I've always known. I don't know where he is, but I have a pretty good idea why he's missing." Nicholas said sadly as he stepped around the desk. Yue felt her blood run cold and huddled closer to Nodoka as she looked at the pants leg of the master of the castle which was within arm's reach.

"So, you've known about Asuna all this time too." Eva continued.

"How did you find out about…" Nicholas said startled.

"I've been talking to Al. It turns out he's not dead either." Eva said smugly. "Man, you're more cold-hearted than I would have ever guessed. I'm impressed."

"Shut up you insufferable witch." Nicholas spat in defeat. "I did what I had to do."

"So is that what you're doing now?" Eva asked seriously. "It doesn't have to be this way Nicholas. She wouldn't have wanted you to do this."

"I said be silent woman!" Nicholas shouted. "I will NOT allow Negi to feel that pain. It nearly killed Nagi, just like…"

"Just like you?" Eva said pointedly. "I think you underestimate him you know. I think you're underestimating both of them."

"This conversation is over." Nicholas said coldly walking around the desk to leave. "I am going to bed, I advise you to do the same."

Yue and Nodoka waited until the sound of the two old adversaries faded from their hearing. The two then quietly crept from the office to sneak back to their rooms. Though neither of them said anything, one thing was certain with both of them.

There was more going on here than met the eye.

* * *

Evangeline lay on her bed and feigned sleep when the two girls came sneaking back in. She smiled as she felt them moving around in the adjacent rooms. She had smelled the candle and guessed someone was hiding in the study, but she hadn't known who until she returned to see who was missing. Finding out it was the two of them seemed oddly appropriate somehow. The boy could thank her later after this was all over.

**A/N: Don't you just hate it when people know something you don't...**


	8. Socializing

**A/N: Okay, I don't own Negima, but you already knew that. I hope all of you who celebrate it had a Happy Thanksgiving. Sorry this post is a little late, I just got back into town from my own celebrations myself.**

**Chapter 8) Socializing**

Negi looked at his suit in the mirror and groaned. Behind him, Kotaro chortled a little in his much more conservative outfit. Negi looked back at the rather ostentatious garb his grandfather had insisted on him wearing and thought he could practically hear the girls squealing and insisting that he was a prince. Most of the designs in this outfit went out of style around the turn of the century… the eighteenth century.

Negi adjusted the frill over his thigh length waistcoat and examined his oversized cuffs. It was going to be a long night.

"So, western mages generally marry their partner right?" Kotaro said seriously turning back to his more serious line of questioning.

"Usually." Negi told him, happy to have a break from his ridicule. "Why the sudden interest in partnership?"

Kotaro muttered an unintelligible response before turning back to his own preparations. Negi thought it odd that his friend would suddenly clam up and become unresponsive until he remembered the incident with Yue. "Have you been talking to Yue about becoming her partner?"

"No. I was just curious okay?" Kotaro said quickly, loudly, and defensively, thus confirming Negi's suspicions.

"I think you'd make a wonderful partner for her." Negi said with aplomb.

"I'm telling you that wasn't what we talked about!" Kotaro yelled.

"What did you talk about then?" Negi said seizing the opening that Kotaro had left open.

Kotaro slapped his forehead in frustration. "Look, I promised I wouldn't tell, alright?"

"Of course," Negi said smartly, "true gentlemen never kiss and tell."

"I told you it's not like that!" Kotaro cried desperately, waving his arms around. He then seemed to go sullen.

"I'm sorry Kotaro, is everything alright?" The boy mage said looking at his friend and rival in alarm. He was accustomed to seeing Kotaro's outbursts, but he'd learned that for the normally action oriented youth to go pensive usually meant something was direly wrong.

"Yeah, everything's… no, everything is not fine." Kotaro admitted finally. "Yue and I had a date before we left."

"I don't see a problem." Negi said mystified. "By the look of things when I walked in on the two of you, I'd assumed you'd had several."

"No, we haven't. The thing is Negi, up until now I wasn't really sure how I felt about Yue, and Yue has been having feelings for… someone else. We had a long talk about it when we went out, but we really didn't come to any conclusions. Yue still likes this other person, but she doesn't know what exactly it is she feels. She spends so much time thinking that she doesn't know how to feel right. She's not driven by emotion like I am; she's not a heat-of-the-moment type of person." The young dog demon explained.

Negi thought about this seriously. This was an interesting revelation. He had no idea that Yue of all people might have a love interest. He had actually considered her "safe" to hang around with since she was always so logical and she'd only ever been out to help Nodoka in her relationship. She'd been absolutely aghast at the idea of kissing him during the pactio ritual since she apparently considered him 'Nodoka's'. He briefly wondered who it could be that she had a crush on, but it didn't really matter. Kotaro was his friend and it fell to him to cheer for those close to him. This other guy would just have to go.

"So what you're telling me is… you have a _rival_ for Yue's affection." Negi said slowly. Putting things in perspective for Kotaro would probably be more than enough to cure the fighter's dilemma.

Kotaro snapped back as if slapped. "A… a… rival? Why would you say that?"

"Yue likes this other guy, and possibly you. That makes this guy your romantic rival. Now, are you going to lose to this guy, or are you going to beat him out and convince Yue that you can love her better than he'd ever be able?" The boy mage said raising his fist to make it look like a challenge to the demon and get him fired up.

Kotaro suddenly grinned from ear to ear. "You're right! This is war, just as real as a fight. I am going to win Yue or else. I will not lose to you!"

"Me?!" Negi asked in alarm.

"Oops, sorry, I mean I'm not going to lose to this guy." Kotaro said sheepishly. "I guess I got caught up in the heat of the moment again."

"No problem." Negi said with relief, the idea that Yue would be in love with him… how silly. "So what's this guy like?"

Kotaro was smiling broadly now. "Clueless, and a little bit of a dork. He's intelligent though, and I'm not sure I could beat him in a fair fight."

The boy mage nodded somberly. "Well, you don't have to worry about combat strength. Yue isn't going to be impressed by you beating the snot out of this guy. What you need is to prove yourself a better match for Yue, and to be better at courting than this chap."

"I don't know; Yue is so much different than I am. She has more in common with this other fellow and he seems to be a natural when it comes to charisma." Kotaro said sadly.

"Therein lies your strength. Opposites attract, and I can't think of anyone more opposite to you than Yue. Show her how the two of you complete each other and how this other guy can't. And if he's charismatic, unless I'm wrong, this other guy is probably a bit of a Casanova too, with lots of girlfriends?" Negi offered.

"You got that right." Kotaro said jealously.

"Well, show her that you only have eyes for her and her alone and that the depth of a relationship with you would be more than whatever she might have with a shallow self-absorbed lady's man." Negi advised. True, a ten year old teacher didn't have much experience to draw from in matters of the heart, but what he was saying sounded good, and he hoped it didn't steer his compatriot too far wrong.

"Negi, I think that might have been some of the best advice I've ever gotten from a rival." Kotaro said laughing as he punched Negi on the arm.

"Hehe, glad I could help, and remember, no mercy. This is your heart we're talking about." The pint-sized professor lectured as he massaged his sore shoulder.

"Trust me, not an ounce." Kotaro announced as he finished getting ready. He then headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Negi asked curiously.

"I'm going to see if I can find some flowers, and possibly a corsage. I have an opportunity tonight that I do NOT intend to let slip away." The young fighter exclaimed as he headed out the door.

Negi watched him leave and shook his head. He felt sorry for whomever it was that Kotaro was in competition with. Kotaro could be quite driven when he put his mind to it. Either way, Negi shouldn't have to worry about the demon challenging him or anything for a while. He was going to be too distracted.

Negi finished dressing and took one final look at his reflection in the mirror. He hoped none of the girls laughed at him. He looked like a slightly older version of the mythical detective Loki, from the anime that Konoka liked to watch. Oh well, with luck the girls would be too busy laughing to try to undress him again.

Negi sneaked through the halls trying to avoid anyone that might see him in his embarrassing get-up, and slowly crept up to the ballroom doors. Several of his grandfather's friends had shown up for the event and Negi noticed his class had already arrived and were milling around admiring each other's beautiful dresses. Negi gulped and was about to slip away when he caught sight of someone.

Nekane practically glowed as she walked amongst his class introducing herself to them. It had been so very long since he'd had the comfort of his sisterly cousin's company that he hadn't realized that he'd stepped into the open.

"Introducing, young master Negi Springfield!" The doorman intoned like the gong of a church bell announcing to all present the death of Negi's self-respect.

Every eye turned towards the humiliated boy mage, and he could practically feel the smirks coming from some of his 'colleagues' amongst the mage community who found it amusing that his grandfather still dressed him like a… well, like a ten year old.

Negi stopped counting the silent girlish outbursts of "Kawaii!" from his class as they quietly whispered to each other how cute he looked in the little outfit, and in some cases who cute some of them thought he'd look outside of it.

Negi nearly tripped stepping down the stairs into the ball room and the onlookers went back to their conversation while Negi was left staring at the tide of raging hormones coming to claim him.

The girls however slammed against the dam which was Nekane's presence as she swept forward to wrap Negi up into her welcome embrace. "Negi! I've missed you so much!"

"Sister!" Negi sighed happily as his stay of execution arrived. He had missed her too, and now he was almost happy his grandfather had summoned him home.

"It's good to see you Negi. So tell me, what's life like in Japan?" Nekane asked lovingly.

"I can't really complain. Where's Anya?" Negi replied looking around for the diminutive sorceress.

"She's getting ready. You know, for the duels." Nekane said in a whisper.

Negi blanched and then nodded somberly. "I guess there's no helping it. Grandfather is insistent on holding these stupid trials."

"I'm certain grandfather only wants what's best for you Negi." Nekane said uncertainly.

"What do you mean? Has he said something to you?" Negi asked.

"What makes you say that?" Nekane asked uneasily.

"The fact that you're squirming like you've been caught out past your bedtime." Evangeline said walking up.

"Master!" Negi admonished as Nekane paled and stepped back a little as if she'd been caught propositioning a minor.

"Tell him the truth, girl." Eva demanded.

Negi looked back and forth between Evangeline and his cousin until finally she nodded. "Grandfather is starting the trials first thing in the morning."

Negi snorted. "Just like him too, he's going to wear the girls out tonight so they'll be easy pickings in the morning."

"And?" Eva pressed.

"I'm going to be competing too." Nekane confessed.

"But sister, you're a full mage. Surely he can't expect the girls to…" Negi shouted indignantly.

"Can and does." Eva said primly. "He's not playing fair, and he intends to embarrass as many of the girls and send them packing as he can. He's been gloating about it all day long."

"What am I going to do?" Negi whined to himself.

"Deal with it I suppose." The Undying Mage replied coldly. "Not all fights are evenly matched. Don't expect a real enemy to go easy just because you're weaker than they are. You also shouldn't expect enemies to wait until you've had a full night's rest. You should have realized that from the training I've been giving you by now."

"I know that about me, but the girls are not…" Negi started.

"If they can't handle this little bit of adversity then they need to hang up their pactio cards now. Don't underestimate them, and try to have some faith in them for once." The Dark Evangel scolded.

Negi looked to his cousin and realized she was already upset about his grandfather's decision and decided not to press it. It wasn't like she had any more choice in the matter than he did. "Good luck sister."

Nekane's smile reassured him and Negi started to feel better about the coming days. Leave it to Eva to shatter his moment.

"Well, boy, I'm taking my turn first." Eva announced to her young pupil.

"What turn are you talking about?" Negi asked in rising alarm.

"I'm taking the first dance of course. I want to tweak your grandfather's nose before the fireworks get started." Eva announced imperiously.

"We're having fireworks?" Nekane asked innocently.

"Sort of." The vampire replied enigmatically.

Before Negi could object, Eva dragged him out onto the dance floor and pulled him into a close embrace as the two danced across the floor. Negi could only catch brief glimpses of the girls in his class as he danced, and his grandfather was nowhere in sight.

"I wonder if grandfather's watching." Negi thought aloud.

"He is." Eva reported with a smirk.

"He can see us?" Negi asked uneasily as he remembered his grandfather's dislike for Eva.

"If the smoke rolling out of his ears is any indication, yes he can see us." Eva said happily.

Negi practically felt the heat of his grandfather's stare as the old man came across the floor to interrupt the vampire from her frolic. Eva had just dipped him backwards and he was looking up at his upside down patriarch when he finally reached them.

"What do you call yourself doing?" Nicholas asked angrily.

"The Tango." Eva replied simply as the two continued to dance.

"You are NOT going to spend the evening dancing with my grandson." Nicholas announced pacing back and forth after the two.

"Do you want to cut in?" Eva asked innocently batting her eyelashes at the old man.

"If I want a smart comment…" The elder Springfield started.

"…you could always go look one up." The petulant little vampire retorted.

"I have had about enough of your lip you little demon. I saw you over there with my grandchildren talking about me." Nicholas growled from between clenched teeth.

"Oh, was I laughing?" Eva asked.

"No." Nicholas replied dubiously.

"Then I wasn't talking about _you_ then, so there." Eva shot back with a smile.

Negi thought his grandparent was going to lose his cool on the spot, but to his merit he remained calm. "If I did not have a house full of guests I would content myself trying to test your title of 'The Undying Mage' to the utmost."

"That sounds like a challenge. We still haven't had that rematch you know." Evangeline said primly as the old man glowered at her.

"Fine. I'll meet you in the library." Nicholas announced and he then turned on his heels and stalked out of the ballroom.

The dance ended and Negi politely walked Eva towards the door to the ballroom, worried about the evening's events. As soon as they neared the door, Eva pulled him out and slipped out of sight of the guests and his class. "You can thank me for this later boy. I'll expect a price paid in blood. For now, make yourself scarce until the right moment."

"What are you talking about master? You aren't going to do anything to my grandfather are you?" Negi asked in alarm.

"Oh no, nothing like that. I just know what other people are planning and I'm taking the opportunity to annoy Nicholas. The only thing Nicholas is getting from me tonight is another embarrassing defeat at chess." Eva said looking back into the dance hall for the rest of his class. Then she cast a spell that created an illusion of Negi on her arm. "You go; I'm going to make sure Nicholas gets a migraine. You owe me for this one boy."

Negi was just about to ask what she was talking about when the sound reached his ears.

* * *

Asuna was bored. After watching with amusement as Eva pulled Negi out of the room, she went back to watching the evening's festivities. Everything was quite elegant, and needless to say she felt out of place. Ayaka was the elegant one in the class. She hated to admit it, but sometimes she really envied the rich girl's grace and princess-like bearing.

One thing she DID have on Ayaka though was her keen sense of hearing. When she heard the noise from outside she was certain that she was one of the only people inside that heard it. She looked around quickly, but everyone else was too busy talking, dancing, or in the case of Ayaka and Makie, looking for Negi.

Asuna quickly ducked out of the ballroom to go investigate. It really wasn't anything she felt necessary to be worried about, it just gave her something to do rather than watch a somewhat boring party.

Asuna followed the noise which she suddenly realized was singing. For some reason the sound was pulling at her and refusing to let go. If it was some sort of charm magic it shouldn't work on her right? Never-the-less, Asuna was drawn as a moth to the flame towards the beautiful melody that some girl was singing out in the garden.

Asuna was nearly to the garden when she saw Negi. Drawn as she was, the boy mage walked resolutely toward the door that led out into the courtyard. Asuna was alarmed that maybe it WAS some sort of enchantment, so she hurried after him.

She stopped short when she reached one of the draped windows that looked out over the garden from the hallway and pull back the drapes to get a quick peek, before launching into danger.

What she found though was far from dangerous, unless you were to ask Makie and perhaps Ayaka. Out in the garden, Nodoka was singing the haunting melody that she had heard all the way in the ballroom. Asuna couldn't understand the words, but somehow she knew it was a lullaby. For some reason it felt familiar to her as well.

Negi approached the girl hesitantly; his outrageous outfit making him stick out amongst the flowers of the garden. Nodoka on the other hand looked completely at home. She was wearing an amazing dark blue velvet gown, with silver embroidery and tiny silver flowers emblazoned across the shoulders.

"Asuna!" Ayaka said behind her. Asuna jumped nearly out of her skin, barely having the presence of mind to close the curtain behind her.

"We saw Negi-kun walking this way." Makie said apologetically. "Have you seen him?"

Asuna started to tell them the truth, but then thought better of it. She'd heard about Nodoka getting the short end of the stick when it came to the dressmakers, and that she had been trying to make her own. She therefore didn't want to see her hard work come to nothing by having Ayaka barrel into her moment with Negi.

"Uh, actually, I think I saw him go that way." Asuna said pointing down a side hall that would take the two well away from the young couple.

"Thanks Asuna!" Makie cried before vaunting away with Ayaka in tow.

Asuna smiled benignly until the two were out of sight and then bolted to get a better view of what was going on in the garden. She was just… curious is all, yeah, just curious. And if she looked like she was hiding behind a curtain it was because she didn't want to interrupt the two.

"I'm sorry sensei. Was I singing too loud?" Nodoka asked innocently.

_Smooth…_ Asuna thought bitterly.

"No you weren't. If I hadn't been standing in the hall I doubt I would have heard you. Tell me, what song were you singing?" Negi asked the librarian. Asuna risked a quick peek from the window to see what was going on. Negi had shed his coat, and she hated to admit it, but standing there in the summer breeze wearing the frilly linen shirt did make him look like a handsome little prince.

"Nana taught it to me. It's a lullaby and it's supposed to be really good at calming people." Nodoka replied with a smile.

"I remember it. Nana used to sing it to me whenever I was here." Negi said wistfully as he sat down on the little bench next to the girl whose heart he had cluelessly stolen. "Would you sing it for me?"

"Of course sensei," Nodoka said sweetly.

Asuna had to give her full marks for planning. As she watched, Nodoka's melody slowly lulled the boy into a slouch and then finally into laying his head in her lap while he stretched out on the bench. Negi lay there sleepily looking up into the face of the closest thing he had to a girlfriend and yawning while Nodoka idly and played with a lock of his hair.

The song she sang made Asuna's heart ache. She never would have believed she could be jealous of Nodoka, but something about the scene in front of her made her want to cry. She didn't understand why she was feeling the way she did, but it was at least an old familiar pain… loneliness. She had friends, but she'd never really had anyone close to her as Negi had been for some time now. She'd also never admit to anyone that it was comforting to have him in her bed at night. His presence made her feel less alone.

Asuna turned to go when she heard footsteps behind her. She froze in place and slowly peeked out from the curtains to see what was going on. Again she nearly jumped when she found herself face to face with Yue.

The two of them stood there looking at each other guiltily, trying to find a really good excuse as to why they should be there. Finally, it was Yue who broke the silence. "So… how's it going?"

"Oh pretty well, nice party huh?" Asuna said dismissively.

"No Asuna, I mean the date." Yue said flatly.

Asuna started to protest that technically it wasn't a date, but decided to drop it. Yue was there for the same purpose she was. She was spying. Asuna liked to think her reasons were different from Yue's though. "You really don't want to know."

"That good huh?" Yue said taking up a post on the other side of the window from Asuna. The two stood and listened as Nodoka finished her singing. "I never even knew she could sing."

"Me either." Asuna agreed.

"You'd think I would have known, being her best friend." The young mage apprentice said bowing her head.

"I feel like I know that melody." Asuna noted.

"You probably heard a similar one when you were baby. Lullabies tend to be rather generic you know." The Baka Leader commented idly.

The two girls watched as Nodoka dipped her head down and kissed Negi as he reclined in her lap. She was apparently whispering now since even Asuna couldn't hear her. Asuna turned to look at Yue to find her looking away.

"Does it bother you seeing them together?" Asuna asked sympathetically.

"Not really. I guess… I guess I just wanted to give Nodoka her special moment without my prying eyes." Yue said in a melancholy tone that spoke volumes as to how poor of a liar she was.

"I don't believe you." Asuna said mildly. "I had the same look on my face for days when I first saw Takahata-sensei eating dinner with Shizuna-sensei. It hurts. Trust me, I know."

Yue looked back at her and then turned to watch the two young lovers as they laughed and talked in the garden. "I just wish my feelings were a little more… logical."

"Good luck on that one." Asuna said flatly. Her own heart seemed to have a mind of its own at times too. "So, uh, how did the talk with Kotaro go?"

Yue's sudden glare took Asuna off guard. "We're not an item."

"I wasn't saying you were!" Asuna said quickly, placating her friend. "I just remember you saying you were going to set him straight."

Yue seemed to relax, but she still seemed on edge. "To be honest, we didn't talk about all that much really. I told him that I really didn't know how I felt about him and I confessed to him that I really liked Negi-sensei."

"That's odd." The Red Baka noted.

"What?" Baka Black asked uneasily.

"You said 'liked'. You didn't say 'I really like Negi-sensei'." The taller girl said with a grin.

"I didn't mean it like that Asuna." Yue shot back hotly.

Asuna was just about to press her further on it but decided instead, to simply nod and take one last look at Negi and Nodoka before heading back to the party.


	9. Threatening

**A/N: The usual disclaimers apply, I do not own Negima. It is with some trepidation that I post this chapter. It's a lot heavier drama than the rest of the story so far. I hope everyone finds it to their liking.**

**Chapter 9) Threatening**

Nicholas ran through the halls. It hadn't taken him long to realize that he'd been duped by the beast which called herself Evangeline. She'd gotten him to let his guard down. Now Negi was roaming the castle, and God only knew what he might be into with one of his young students.

It wasn't until he'd reached the hallway and heard the singing that he began to worry. Now his old legs groaned in complaint as the elderly patriarch raced through the hall towards the garden. He was at a dead run when he got close enough to recognize the song. So intent was he in reaching the garden, he never saw the wall of fat flesh that blocked his path until he collided with it.

For once, Nicholas was glad he'd spent the extra money for the deep plush carpeting that covered the otherwise bare stone floor of this particular hallway. He landed hard on his rear, looking up dazed into the face of his maid, Abigail.

"What in the name of all that is holy are you doing woman; are you daft?" Nicholas said stiffly as he got up in the same manner. "Watch where you're going, I need to get out there into the garden."

The old mage tried to brush past Abigail only to have her move into his path blocking his way. "Woman, I suggest the explanation you are about to give me be exceptionally good."

"You are not going to interfere, Nicholas." Abigail said straightly.

"Nonsense!" He spat as he tried to step around her, and was once again blocked. "Do not try me woman, I am not in the mood. Now get out of the way."

"I will do no such thing." The matronly maid replied hotly. "Ever since you received that picture of the young master kissing that girl you've been in a snit, and I'm not about to let you interfere with those two children."

"The operative word here is 'children' Abigail! Negi is just a boy, I am not about to allow…" Nicholas ranted.

"You will not be allowing or disallowing anything. He has got to be free to make his own choices and sabotaging his relationships is no way to keep him safe." Abigail countered.

"You have no idea what you're talking about! You cannot even comprehend what is at stake here!" Negi's grandfather bellowed. "Now get out of the way before I use force! I am the master of this castle, and I will not be sassed by my own servants!"

"No, I know exactly what is at stake here; the heart of your grandson. Look out into the garden." Abigail said crossing her arms defiantly.

"I can't do that if you won't bloody well move." Nicholas said his voice thick with faked patience.

"Use that all powerful magic of yours then. Look at them." Abigail said unmoving.

Nicholas grumbled, but complied, more out of a need to know what was going on out there. With a swift motion he opened a hole in the air before him, folding space and time to allow him to peer into the garden. There he saw Negi and the Miyazaki girl together. Nicholas simmered with a quiet rage. His normal bluster gone his voice now whispered quietly. Only his most hated enemies (most of whom were now dead) had ever heard that voice. "What is she doing in that dress?"

"It looks good on her does it not?" Abigail noted clinically, "Almost as if it was meant for her."

"That is _her_ dress. How dare you violate her memory out some sort of twisted need to meddle in my family's affairs?" The old man said turning to his newest enemy. "You taught the Miyazaki girl that song too didn't you. I think your stay here is at an end."

"Like you can dismiss me that easily," Abigail snorted, "you seem to forget that I am not only here at your whim and never you forget it again. I have a task laid before me and I intend to complete it, just like Takamichi."

Nicholas growled and turned on the woman. She was right though, she couldn't be dismissed that easily, and all the magic in the world would do him no good since the only way to stop her would be to kill her, which was looking like a better option by the moment. "Stay out of this. If you really care for Negi's well-being, you'll let me do what MUST be done."

"I think your own experiences have colored what "must" be done, Nicholas. You will not be honoring either of their memories by doing this, and it will not give you peace." Abigail said sadly. She seemed to soften for a moment in what could only be pity for him. The very idea turned his stomach.

Suddenly, a new idea breached his mind. He need not bother with this issue himself. Concentrating, he issued a command with his mind. He then turned his back to the insufferable housekeeper to hide his triumphant smile. "Very well, we shall see how the Miyazaki girl fairs in the combat trials. You can't stop those, and I doubt she'll be able to sing her way through them while wearing a pretty dress."

Nicholas began humming to himself as he left. He knew of at least ONE servant that had never failed him.

* * *

The older woman watched Nicholas retreat down the hallway and then let out an explosive breath, her former bravado gone in an instant. She watched the old man turn a corner and then looked toward the garden. 

"Alright Nodoka, I've helped as much as I can for now. The rest is up to you." She whispered before heading off in the opposite direction.

Yue stepped from behind the drape with her heart pounding in her chest to make up for the entire time it was standing still while the two argued. She was beginning to regret learning the ability to gauge someone's magical energy. Nicholas was staggering. Nearly as strong as Negi or his father, he carried with it skill Nagi lacked, and experience Negi would need a lifetime to acquire. Yue had nearly passed out as she had felt his power level rise with each passing moment while the two had argued. The man could have easily blasted the woman to cinders, but hadn't. Yue wondered at the old woman's courage.

"I don't think he's going to let this rest." Asuna said seriously. "If he's anything like Negi he'll never let it go. He's planning something."

"Something terrible…" Yue agreed. She had seen his smile and it made her blood run cold. "We've got to do something."

"I'll follow Nicholas and make sure he doesn't do anything. You stay here and make sure Ayaka and Makie don't interfere either. If Nicholas is trying to sabotage Nodoka's relationship with Negi, well, it's her relationship but we can't just let it happen. She deserves the chance to see how far it will go for herself." Asuna said with conviction. Then as quickly as anything, she departed running down the corridor.

Yue thought about what she was going to do, but then she really didn't have many options. She supposed she could warn Nodoka, but then she didn't want to bother her when she was probably having the moment of a lifetime.

Yue paced the hallway in front of the door to the garden with indecision when she felt someone approach. Yue looked to find a young man walking through the corridors with a lopsided grin on his face as he whistled tunelessly with his hands behind his neck.

Yue gulped as he approached, his good looks being such that they attracted the appreciative stares of young women and the angry glares of young men. He noticed her and seemed to slip noiselessly through the halls towards her. "Hey there, cutie."

Yue looked around for who he might be talking to, and finally not seeing anyone else pointed at herself in shock. "Are you talking to me?"

"No one else here is there?" The boy said with a roguish little snicker. "So who might you be?"

Yue began to introduce herself when warning bells went off in the back of her mind. _What if Nicholas sent this guy?_

"I… I'm… My name is Nodoka. Miyazaki Nodoka; and what's your name." Yue said with a gulp.

"Me? My name's Galin. It just so happens I was looking for you." Galin said as he sidled closer.

Everything in Yue's mind screamed at her to run, but she felt like if she tried to move her knees would give way, they were shaking so bad, thank goodness for wearing a dress that went down to the ankle. "You were looking for me?" She blurted dumbly. _Is this guy using magic on me? I can't sense anything…_

"All my life." Galin said with a grin. "But seriously, is Negi around anywhere?"

"He… He left, just a moment ago. I can go find him…" Yue said turning to bolt.

"Oh, that's alright. It's not like I _really_ need to see him." Galin said grabbing Yue's wrist. "You strike me as _much_ more interesting company."

Yue's breath caught in her throat as Galin pulled her close. "What are you doing?"

"Seducing you so that I can steal your heart away and carry you away with me forever; sound like fun?" The handsome youth said staring deeply into her eyes. He laughed as if he was kidding, but in the back of Yue's mind something clicked. _He thinks I'm Nodoka! Oh my god, this is Nicholas' plan. That's why he left looking so smug with himself. He's going to drive Negi and Nodoka apart by throwing this… bloody hell he's handsome… guy at her._

Yue gulped her mind racing to try to make sense of what was going on. She needed to scream, she needed to get away, there was no telling what this guy might do. It was then that Yue remembered how she had first been embraced by the clone of Negi, and how he'd pulled her close exactly like this. This however was a nightmare in sharp contrast to her dream. Fear gripped her as she realized this strong, virile, and definitely masculine young man could probably do anything to her right now. She was alone, and no matter what attraction she might have for him, her fear was beginning to grow into panic.

"Please, you're hurting me. I have to get back." Yue said struggling feebly.

"Nonsense, Negi's already left you here and there's probably nothing to do in that boring old party anyway. Just stay here with me and I'll show you what a _real_ man's like."

Yue whimpered as Galin's arm pulled tighter around her waist and his hand dipped down lower on her back until it was just brushing her backside. Fire arced through her at his touch as she felt a sickening desire that revolted her warring for dominance against the fear she was feeling.

Yue felt tears falling down her cheek as Galin's hot breath touched the sensitive skin of her neck. Against her will she felt her head moving aside to allow him closer to nibble and kiss at her neck. Her breath coming in painful gasps now, the young mage could barely whisper. "Please… no."

A low rumble echoed through the hallway as Yue felt as if the very room was vibrating. She could only tell that Galin had noticed this when he momentarily froze in place and then pulled away.

"Let. Her. Go." Kotaro's voice said as it reached Yue's ears. In all her life she'd never heard a more beautiful sound.

"Well, well, it seems that someone forgot to lock the pet door. Looking for pointers little puppy, or did someone forget to feed you today?" Galin said with a sneer directed at the young boy.

Galin moved and Yue could see Kotaro standing there trembling with fury, his fist bleeding from his grip around the freshly cut roses he was carrying. "I said let her go, or I'll tear you in two."

"Like you could, demon," Yue's unwelcome suitor snorted. "Are you even housebroken yet?"

Galin shifted his weight with cat-like grace into a fighting stance, still clutching Yue at his side.

Yue thought for a moment she was about see bloodshed when she heard Negi and Nodoka coming in from the garden. Kotaro and Galin both glanced towards the doors and Galin growled his annoyance. "This isn't over pup. Until later, my pet."

Before Yue knew what was happening, the lithe young man whipped her around and claimed her lips with his own. Yue felt the heat from his sensual aura as he deepened the kiss for moment and then broke away as Kotaro charged for him no matter who might see them fighting.

Yue's world spun for a moment, and the next thing she knew she was sitting on the floor with Kotaro hovering over her looking down the hall where Galin had undoubtedly fled.

With the object of her revulsion removed, cold logic regained control of Yue's senses enough to realize that Negi and Nodoka were on their way back into the castle so she quickly grabbed Kotaro and sped away. She had to get away. She couldn't let them see her like this and she really didn't want to try to explain it all right now. Later, when she was calm she would warn Nodoka, but right now all she wanted to do was flee.

Yue didn't stop until she reached the rooms that she was sharing with the other girls and she thrust Kotaro's hand aside and ran into the bathroom as fast as she could go. Once there she barely grabbed the toilet in time, before her day's drinking binge came up the wrong way.

For what seemed like an eternity, Yue wretched into the bowl all she had in her stomach until she was going into dry heaves at the taste of Galin on her lips. She had now been kissed by three different men. She'd never forget any of those moments no matter how hard she might try in the case of Galin.

Yue was breathing heavily, as her world began to come into focus and reveal more than the sight of porcelain. Someone was with her, holding her hair out of her face, with their arm around her shoulders in concern. It took her a moment to realize it was Kotaro.

Yue crumbled into Kotaro's embrace. She was gasping for air, sobbing, and trying to heave up something from her empty stomach all at once. Convulsions wracked her body as she trembled uncontrollably. She didn't know how long she stayed there like that, but after a while she noticed that Kotaro was holding her close. She pushed him away forcefully.

"Don't TOUCH me!" Yue yelled at the boy.

"Yue, I'm sorry! I was just trying to help!" Kotaro said helplessly.

Yue sagged as her moment of angry energy left her. The words hadn't really been meant for Kotaro. She just wished she'd been able to use them earlier against the man who deserved the treatment.

"I'm sorry Kotaro. I'm just a little edgy right now." Yue said truthfully.

"Did he… hurt you?" Kotaro said slowly. The boy looked mortified. Next to Galin, he did look like a boy, but Yue was beginning to understand all to well Nodoka's fear of men and why she would be attracted to a less threatening boy like Negi or… or Kotaro. _Oh god, has anything like this ever happened to Nodoka?_ Yue didn't want to think about it, and was reasonably sure she'd never get the courage to ask Nodoka such a question.

Yue could only shake her head in exhaustion. Her emotions had ripped through her like a wildfire and she hadn't been able to control them. All of her logic had availed her nothing against the rampant sensuality and masculinity of Galin.

"What happened?" Kotaro asked timidly. He looked unsure of what to do.

"That guy was after Nodoka. Negi's grandfather sent him to seduce her away from Negi." Yue said sickly.

"He did WHAT?" Kotaro blurted in shock.

"I told him I was Nodoka to keep him away from the two of them. That was when he… started coming on to me a little strong." Yue said quietly.

"YUE! He almost ra…" Kotaro started.

"I KNOW WHAT HE ALMOST DID!" Yue screamed at the boy and then regretted it. He had after all been the only thing that had kept the unthinkable from happening.

"I never would have believed that Negi's grandfather would be capable of something like that." Kotaro said, stunned.

"I'm not so sure he did." Yue said numbly. "I saw him leave before Galin showed up looking for Nodoka. It's possible he just put Galin to the general task, but Galin was the one that went too far. At least, I hope that's the case."

Yue was distraught, and right now she _needed_ to be alone to collect her feelings, except that right now the last thing she _wanted_ was to be alone. Somewhere in the back of her mind the idea of Galin coming back to finish what he started gnawed at her psyche threatening to bring her to tears.

Yue muttered some sort of apology to Kotaro and then looked at herself in the mirror. She was worried, and found that her fears were well founded.

"What is it Yue?" Kotaro asked. There on Yue's skin was a very small red mark where Galin's lips had been. It was probably going to be there in the morning. "Is that what's called a…"

"It's a bruise." Yue said resolutely. "Put there by someone who is never going to get the chance to do that to me again."

Kotaro nodded. She could tell he was upset too. "Is there anything I can do?"

Yue started to dismiss the boy, but again her need to have someone near overwhelmed her. All Yue could think about was Galin marking her as his. She'd dreamt of having a moment of passion in which someone she cared about might do that to her, but this was never what she intended.

_Unfortunately, the closest thing I have to boyfriend is Kotaro._ Yue thought cynically. It was then that the idea came to her.

Kotaro was looking at her worriedly as she stared at him and nearly through him. "Yue?"

"Kotaro, do you love me?" Yue asked uneasily.

"I… I think so." Kotaro said blushing. "You may think it sounds stupid, but I've always tried to be Negi's rival. The idea of winning your heart over from Negi, well it sounded so cool."

Yue could only sigh at the boy's stupidity. "So you're trying to tell me I'm nothing more than a trophy to you?"

"No, no, no, that's not it at all!" Kotaro said waving his hands in from of him in desperation as he started to babble. "Oh, I'm making such a mess of this! Yue, you know I'm no good with words, and I can't really tell you how I feel exactly. Not because I don't feel it, but because I don't know how to say it right. Just telling you that I love you seems like it wouldn't be enough. You're so smart and beautiful, and you need somebody to tell you those things like they need to be instead of like how I might say it. Look, somebody told me that if I really wanted to win you over that I couldn't do it by strength and that I would have to show you that I would be better for you than some shallow, self-absorbed, lady's man."

Yue looked at Kotaro in surprise. This was the closest the boy had probably ever come to being able to bear his heart and confess to someone, and he was doing it for Yue. It was touching actually, and it made Yue feel better about her decision. She didn't know if she could ever love someone like Kotaro, but the fact that he at least loved her would make it alright.

"Kotaro, you don't have to use pretty words for me." Yue said steeling herself for what she was about to do. "Just tell me simply, do you love me?"

Kotaro looked at her with all his emotion brought up from the depths of his soul. He might be saying it because it was only the heat of the moment, but relationships had been started with as much or less. "Yes Yue, I love you."

"Then right now I don't need to hear anything else." Yue said trembling. "If you can only express your feelings about me with action, then do it now. Kotaro, please hold me, and make this mark go away."

"How?" Kotaro asked in confusion.

"By putting your own over the top of it; I can't stand the idea of being marked by that man and the idea of him touching me again. So I want you to do it. Please do it now before I lose my nerve." Yue said pulling her collar away to expose her neck and closing her eyes.

Yue couldn't see what Kotaro's reaction was, and she probably didn't want to. It would kill her to think she was using the boy. Yue nearly jumped when Kotaro pulled her into his gentle embrace. Yue felt him as he pressed her against the wall of the small bathroom and gently nuzzled her neck. Yue realized that being a dog demon, he was probably inhaling her scent. He moved with delicate slowness, putting tender kisses along her shoulder.

Yue could feel the tears rolling down her cheeks, but she held on. She could do this; she just needed to replace the memory of Galin in her mind with someone who actually cared for her. Yue reached down and pulled Kotaro's hand lower to where Galin's had been, letting the electric jolt of desire flow through her. Yue trembled, afraid to go further as Kotaro became more passionate.

She was unprepared when he pulled away. "Yue, I love you but I won't go any further unless you tell me to. I won't hurt you like he did. I could never hurt you."

Yue whimpered. She wanted so much to hear those words from Negi, but now hearing them from Kotaro both calmed her and frightened her at the same time. Kotaro was just as passionate as Galin had been, the same fire raced through her veins, but now the sickness in her stomach was gone.

"Please Kotaro, I need you." Yue said breathlessly.

Needing no more urging, Kotaro returned to her neck with a fervor that startled the young philosopher. Finally, the trembling and the fear melted from her as she released herself to him, allowing him whatever he might desire of her. Yue let go of the terror of the night and only concentrated on the feeling of Kotaro loving her.

Yue cradled Kotaro's head in her hand as he kissed, nibbled, and sucked at her neck drawing Galin's poison from her very soul. His hair felt silky and smooth between her fingers with an earthy scent that reminded her of a hot summer day. Yue did not protest as Kotaro's hand trailed lower onto her bottom. For now, she was his, and she could deny him nothing.

Reluctantly, Kotaro broke away from her neck to catch his breath as Yue clung to him. He looked ready to say something when Yue's lips crashed into his. All Yue could think about was driving away the memory and the taste in her mouth. She suspected that tomorrow she'd probably be drinking more than usual.

When the two finally regained their senses, Yue was breathless and had her head on Kotaro's shoulder. "Thank you, Kotaro."

"Yue?" The young demon asked quietly.

"Yeah?"

"Did you ask me to do this because you were upset, or because you really care about me?" The young boy asked her.

Yue almost fell sick again at the thought. She really felt as if she'd just used Kotaro. She had been upset and hurting, true, but still she really didn't know how she felt at that moment.

"I don't know. I mean, I can't really tell how I feel." Yue said reaching up to cradle his face in his hands. He deserved something for being there for her. "I'm in just the opposite situation that you are. I know how to express myself with words, but I can't understand my feelings well enough to say it. I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize." Kotaro told her. She could tell it was hurting him to say it though. "It just takes time to sort out how you feel sometimes. I promise I'll wait until you do."

Yue was grateful again for how surprisingly mature Kotaro could be at times. Almost like someone else she knew.

Yue shook her head a little to clear the haze and noticed Kotaro's palm as he reached up to brush her cheek with his fingers. "Here, let me heal that for you. I've been studying some simple healing spells with Konoka."

Yue took Kotaro's hand and led him back to her bed and sat him down while she retrieved her wand. She then held his hand palm upward as she recited the spell. His wound quickly sealed and Yue caught herself lingering for moment studying his strong hands. Just her luck the door opened up at that moment.

Nodoka stood in the doorway looking at the two of them sitting on the side of her bed. Yue looked up at her and when she realized she'd been holding his hand she politely and gently put it down in his lap.

Nodoka pretended not to notice. "Yue, I've been looking all over for you, where have you been?"

"I just had to heal Kotaro's hand. He… cut it picking me some roses." Yue said quickly. "You should go now, Kotaro. The other girls will be getting back and I don't think they'll like finding you here."

"I don't really want to leave you alone." Kotaro whispered to her. "If it means sleeping at your feet as a dog I will."

"That shouldn't be necessary." Yue whispered back. "Nodoka's here now, and I have my wand. I appreciate the offer though."

Slowly, Kotaro nodded and left the room with Nodoka staring after him. After he was gone Nodoka looked back at her friend. "Thank you."

"For what?" Yue asked nonchalantly.

"For not coming into the garden, I saw you and Asuna in the window." Nodoka replied guiltily. "And for standing guard."

"How did you…"

"We met Asuna when we came back inside. She told me that she left you standing guard. Thanks." Nodoka said as she sat down next to Yue. "And I'm sorry."

"What do you mean?" Yue asked with mock innocence.

"Yue, please, I know what happened. When I saw you running away with Kotaro I was afraid that something was the matter. Asuna didn't know what had happened, so I used my book." Nodoka hid her eyes with her bangs. "Something terrible nearly happened to you because you were helping me. What you did was greater than any betrayal you could have imagined having done to me Yue. You are my truest and greatest friend."

Yue was pleased at Nodoka's words, but she still burned with shame. Galin was going to be a sore topic for her for a long time. "I never want to see that guy again."

"I'm afraid we are." The shy bookworm said seriously.

"How?" The frazzled philosopher asked aghast.

"He apparently works for Nicholas. I haven't told Negi-sensei what happened yet, I didn't know how you would feel about me telling him. So instead I went and asked Abigail about this 'Galin'. Apparently he's going to be part of the combat trials tomorrow." Nodoka said worriedly.

Rather than be disturbed, Yue was pleased. Yes, the combat trials would be the ideal place for her to meet Galin. More than anything, THAT would settle her account with the lewd beast. "Good."

"I _did_ tell Abigail what happened, and she was appalled. She assured me that no matter what else Nicholas might be he would never condone such a thing. She said she would have Nicholas deal with Galin if you wanted him to. She also promised to help us any way she could. She may have a few things that will help us in the trials tomorrow. We're supposed to meet her in the library before we go down in the morning." Nodoka said seriously.

"No, this is personal. Galin was after you so I think we both need to be prepared for tomorrow." Yue said smiling. For the first time tonight she began to feel truly happy. Galin would get his tomorrow.

Yue got up to ready herself for bed. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day. She had Kotaro to handle, Negi to compete for, and Galin to reckon with. One way or another, she was going to see something done about that guy personally.

"Um Yue?" Nodoka asked timidly as she stood to help Yue out of her dress.

"Yeah, what is it Nodoka?"

"This thing with you and Kotaro…"

"There is no 'thing' between me and Kotaro." Yue said in annoyance more out of habit than anything else.

"Well, on your neck…"

"Galin did it." Yue lied quickly.

"Oh." Her friend said nodding quickly and smiling broadly.

"What?" The girl asked in irritation.

"There's also a bloody palm print on your bottom…"

**A/N: I don't normally ask for reviews since I've always maintained that it is the act of writing itself that brings me gratification. This time however I really would value everyone's input into the character interaction. I pondered this chapter deeply and I am still undecided as to what to think of it. **

**A.A.**


	10. Eliminating

**A/N: Hello people, the usual is still true: I don't own Negima. What I DO own is a Nintendo Game Cube, and a new Naruto fighting game, so if you will excuse me…**

**Chapter 10) Eliminating**

Yue yawned, not out of boredom, but out of exhaustion. She had not slept easily the previous night. She pulled her collar up to hide the hickey Kotaro had left on her neck. She wasn't ashamed of it really, but Haruna would definitely start asking questions if she saw it, questions that she would rather not answer, and probably leading to an explanation she'd rather not give.

Yue stood between Kotaro and Nodoka among the other girls looking around the massive arena beneath the castle that looked like it belonged in some sort of gladiator movie.

"This place looks creepy." Haruna said with an uncharacteristic shiver.

"It definitely hasn't improved over the years." Evangeline nodded.

"You've been here before?" Setsuna asked.

"Springfield Castle was built over an ancient Roman Legion camp. For entertainment, the soldiers dug a giant pit to hold gladiator tournaments. The castle was later built over the top of it. This relic is actually slightly older than I am. I was here once as a girl. The Roman commander wanted to see if a child vampire was any match for one of his soldiers." Eva said coldly.

"That's horrible Eva-chan!" Konoka said sympathetically.

"Spare me. He was delicious." The Dark Evangel snorted.

Yue noticed a small hole opened up around Eva a little, much to her delight. Nicholas eventually entered, followed by Negi, Nekane, Galin, and another young woman who was obviously a magic user. Yue glared at the youth with murder in her eyes. It was when Takane D. Goodman, Sakura Mei, and Anya came out as well that all the girls' jaw dropped.

Galin saw her looking in his direction and gave her a wink and kissed the air in her direction. The low growl from Kotaro was the only warning Yue was likely to get before Kotaro launched his attack so she quickly reached out to take his arm. She then reached down and gripped his hand as much to steady her own nerves as to keep him in check. Galin cocked an eyebrow, and smirked at the two of them.

"We will now begin the trials." Nicholas announced. "I have selected the opponents that each of you girls will be facing. If any of you wish to back out, now is the time."

No one was really surprised to see Chisame decide to sit the trials out. She'd spoken to Negi about earlier, and wasn't particularly keen on the idea of combat. What DID surprise everyone was to see Konoka step forward.

"You wish to forfeit?" Nicholas asked formally.

"Yes sir. I want to be a mage myself one day and I want Se-chan to be my partner. Since this is a competition to see who will be Negi's permanent partner, it would be unfair of me to compete." Konoka explained respectfully with a polite bow.

"The same goes for me." Setsuna volunteered. "I belong with Ojou-sama."

"Very well. Know that I respect your decisions, and think more of you for them. Please stay to observe the rest of the trials." Nicholas said returning a formal bow. "Now if no one else wishes to back out," he said looking directly at Nodoka, "we'll begin. Each of you will face two consecutive rounds against two different opponents of my choosing. I will judge your performance after each battle."

"Why do _you_ get to be the judge?" Eva asked suspiciously. "It hardly seems fair for you to be holding all the cards since you are also participating."

"_I_ am the judge because _I_ am the one holding these trials; unless you can think of someone else to be an adequate judge of combat ability who is not participating?" Nicholas said with a dangerous gleam in his eyes.

Eva snorted and crossed her arms in exasperation. "Fine, I'll withdraw and judge. You girls are going to have to win though. Unlike him, I'm not going to disqualify someone even if they win."

"It is decided then," the old man said smiling, "after the individual combats we'll commence with the finals between Negi and myself and whoever remains."

Yue did a quick count and realized something was a bit off. "Uh, Nicholas, how will each of us be able to fight two battles? There aren't enough opponents here."

Nicholas' smile was irritatingly calm. "Since Kaede-san and Ku Fei-san are not actually partners, I have selected them to be your opponents as well."

Yue gulped and looked at Nodoka who was looking more worried by the moment. If either of them had to face one of those two it would be a short fight. Negi didn't look too happy about the announcement, but said nothing.

"You girls will be allowed to draw upon your pactio artifacts for support, and anything else you wish to bring into the arena. You will be allowed to use your powers as a Ministra as well. Any questions?" Nicholas concluded.

Haruna was selected as the first combatant so the girls departed for the viewing gallery to watch the battles. Haruna began to prepare her drawings for activation, when Nicholas reached his throne-like chair overlooking the arena. He looked like Caesar overseeing a fight in the Coliseum. Negi stood at his grandfather's side and smiled his encouragement to the girls.

Yue stood and watched as Haruna's first opponent was announced. It was Galin. Yue felt uneasy watching him walk out into the arena carrying two twin rapiers. She worried for Haruna, and shouted her encouragement to he friend. "Destroy him Haruna!" Yue called passionately.

In the end, the battle was over before it really had a chance to begin. Yue watched in horror as Galin's fantastic speed and agility brought him through the horde of minions Haruna conjured. Slipping past the giant fighter Haruna used for her own defense he quickly tackled the girl, bringing her to the ground.

"Get your hands off me you pervert!" Haruna roared at the swordsman.

"GALIN!" Nicholas snapped from his seat. "That is ENOUGH!"

Galin slunk to the side at the reprimand from his master and cast a baleful glare at him. "You never let me have any fun."

The glare from Nicholas could wither small plants, and Galin reluctantly obeyed. Yue wondered what Nicholas would do if he knew what Galin had attempted the previous night.

Haruna rejoined them with an apologetic smile. "I guess I need more training." She then walked over to Nodoka as the two started conspiring.

The next two battles were slightly more interesting as Asuna proved victorious against both Anya and then Nekane herself. Yue and Nodoka both groaned. They'd both hoped to fight the gentle cousin of Negi for themselves, though she had proven to be a formidable adversary for Asuna despite her magic canceling ability.

Finally, it was Yue's turn. She nodded to Nodoka and walked purposefully toward the arena. Kotaro looked ready to hug her for support, but was thankfully restrained as she passed.

Yue hoped that the surprises she'd managed to come up with would serve her well.

* * *

"Your first opponent will be Sakura Mei." Nicholas announced.

"So that girl's Yue?" Galin asked. Negi didn't like the guy, but apparently his grandfather seemed to trust him.

"You know her?" Nicholas asked noncommittally.

"Nearly, she told me she was Nodoka last night." Galin said with a grin.

Negi looked at Galin in apprehension and then looked at his grandfather who was looking decidedly green as he stole a quick glance at Negi.

"What did you do?" Nicholas asked with building anger in his voice.

"Nothing I'm sure she didn't enjoy." Galin said with a chuckle.

Nicholas' hand was all that kept Negi from going after Galin on the spot. "Galin, we will talk of this later." Nicholas said with a chilly quiet to his voice. "I have told you before that I will not tolerate such behavior."

"You sent him after Nodoka?!" Negi growled, incensed.

"We will talk of it later." Nicholas repeated, though with a more subdued tone. Negi intended to get to the bottom of this once the trials were over.

* * *

"Sorry about this." Sakura Mei said as Yue joined her in the arena.

"Me too." Yue replied as the two of them stood before Evangeline.

Evangeline nodded to the two of them and they separated to opposite sides to begin. Yue pulled out her artifact. "Adeat."

_I can't hold back. This girl's a fire user._ Yue thought as she prepared herself. She didn't want to pull out her aces yet, so she'd just have to deal with whatever Mei had to throw at her. She was sorry Kotaro had defeated her so quickly in the tournament now. Having some idea of all she was capable of would be helpful.

"Now!" Evangeline shouted signaling the beginning of the match.

"Maple, Naple, Ala Mode…" Sakura began chanting across the arena.

_Better pull out some back up._ Yue thought reaching into her sleeve. She cast her trick into the middle of the arena and charged forward towards it as she pulled her wand.

"Voco Nebulosus Aeris Ego Puto Ergo Ego Exsisto!" Yue cried as she reached her mark. As she crossed the center of the arena a dense swirling fog surrounded her.

* * *

"What is that girl up to?" Nicholas said sitting forward in his chair.

"She's good." Negi said smiling appreciatively. "She's a water mage as well. Fire tends to have problems with water."

"And vice versa." Nicholas reminded him.

"…Omne Flammans Purgatus…" Sakura continued as the swelling cloud grew. Suddenly two figures burst from opposite sides of the cloud circling the young wizardess.

"Ah, she's using those paper doubles she got from Setsuna." Negi noted as the two Yues darted towards Sakura from either direction.

"Yes, but she has but one wand." Nicholas pointed out as he pointed to the one attacking from Sakura's left.

Sakura seemed to notice this as well, as she turned to face the opponent on her left. "…Domine Extinctionis Et Signum Regenerationis In Mea Manu Ens Inimicum Edat Flagrantia Rubicans!"

Negi watched in horror as the power ripped forth from Sakura and tore into Yue's chest just as she reached her opponent. Fire roared across her chest and all Negi could see was Yue's horrified face as the flames engulfed her turning her to ashes in an instant.

"Yue! I'm so sorry!" Sakura Mei cried in anguish. "I didn't know you wouldn't be able to handle…"

"BAM!" echoed across the arena as Sakura's eyes rolled back in her head before she dropped to her knees and fell forward unconscious.

Yue picked up her heavy book bag and calmly walked over to the remains of her paper double to retrieve her wand before holding it aloft in victory.

Nicholas looked down and shook his head. Negi couldn't help but feel proud of his apprentice. "Figures. After all, Yue doesn't really know any offensive water spells."

Nicholas looked proud despite himself. "Well, I'll be da…"

* * *

"Done!" Evangeline shouted. "This round goes to Ayase Yue! Good job girl."

Yue bowed and headed for the stands.

"Where do you think you're going?" Evangeline asked mildly.

"Um, to go rest?" The victorious little sorceress responded.

"Not quite. These rounds are consecutive. Get ready to meet your next opponent." Eva said shortly before turning to the large doors as they opened ominously. Sakura Mei was being carted out as Yue's next opponent joined her. She felt her heart sink as she watched Takane enter the arena.

_I may be going to apologize for Sakura's headache in person in a moment. _Yue thought dryly. _No! I can't think like that. Expecting defeat is a sure fire way to insure it._

"I sincerely hope you won't think that _I'm_ going to be taken in by a little slight of hand and a bonk to the noggin." Takane said as she summoned the huge shadow creature she usually used for combat.

"I'd be disappointed if you did." Yue said with false bravado trying to copy the self assured smirk she always saw Kotaro using. _I REALLY need to stop thinking about him at times like these._

"Well, if the pleasantries are out of the way… Begin!" Evangeline shouted moving swiftly out of the way as Takane moved forward, charging with her shadow companion.

Yue fell back a little and turned to point her wand at the advancing older girl. "Ego Puto Ergo Ego Exsisto… OOOMPF!" Yue spluttered as the fist of the giant slammed into her stomach hurling her back a few feet.

Yue lay there for moment to collect her senses as she heard the respective gasps from all around the arena. Somewhere she could hear Nodoka shouting her encouragement.

Yue lay there unmoving as Takane walked back to her place proudly and Evangeline began her count. Slowly Yue began climbing to her feet.

* * *

"Stupid girl." Galin snorted mockingly. "If she doesn't know any offensive magic, what's she even doing, trying to be a Ministra?"

"Tell me Galin, what takes more courage, to fight with confidence in yourself knowing you are able to rise to the challenge, or following someone into a fight in the hopes of being of some use to them with only faith that they will protect you?" Nicholas said seriously. "Her grandfather asked me that question once when I arrogantly said something along those same lines. I have a great deal of respect for that young woman, as I did her grandfather. I do not know what has transpired between the two of you, but rest assured I will find out, and I have no doubt you and I will be discussing it at length. Until then however… shut… up."

Negi watched as it was Galin's turn to cower before his grandfather's glare. Down in the arena Yue was throwing up for all she was worth, from the force of the blow to her stomach.

* * *

Yue stood there with her hands on her knees. She definitely never wanted to go through this again, but if this is what it took, then so be it. Yue wiped her mouth and stood to face Takane.

"Finished? I swear child, you drink entirely too much. You probably threw up enough to fill a bath tub." Takane said mockingly.

"You still talking old lady, or are you ready to finish this?" Yue taunted her opponent.

Yue could practically see the flames leaping from Takane's ears as she charged forward again. Yue stood to meet her and then did what any sensible girl would do, she turned and fled.

Takane chased after her as Yue fell back from the onslaught of her Shadow Giant. Takane laughed at her, jumping lithely over the puddle she'd left until Yue finally stopped and turned on her. "NOW!"

Yue darted forward as Takane turned to see Suramui and Ameko spring forth from the puddle to wrap themselves around the arms of her giant.

"That was by far the grossest thing I've ever had to do." Suramui commented to her sister.

"I don't like it when the mistress drinks us." Ameko commented idly.

Takane's eyes bulged out of her skull as Purin wrapped around her chest pinning her arm with her wand to her side. "Hello." The slime said back mildly.

"Those… those are…" Takane said in disgust.

"My servants… Sim Tua Pars Ego Puto Ergo Ego Exsisto Venti!" Yue shouted as she slipped in close.

* * *

"What's THAT supposed to accomplish?" Nicholas asked in confusion, as Yue finished her spell. The wind ripped through the arena and Negi watched as Takane's clothes were once again shredded as her giant was knocked backwards.

"Oh my." Nicholas said politely as he turned his head and covered Negi's eyes with a blush on his face. Galin was openly salivating.

"NOT AGAIN!" Takane bawled before wrapping her arms around her nude form and racing for the exit.

"I'll take that as a forfeit." Evangeline said between gasps of laughter as she pounded the ground, rolling.

Yue climbed the stairs to the viewing gallery to the assembled congratulations of her classmates. "That was AWESOME Yue!" Haruna was saying as she slapped her on the back. "That would make a WONDERFUL manga! I may just have to draw it too."

"I'm glad you found my paper doubles useful… for something other than skipping class." Setsuna said with a blush.

"Yeah squirt, I was impressed. Looks like you might have some fighting spirit in you after all." Kotaro said giving her a thumbs up.

"Looks like you're going to be up next Nodoka." Asuna said looking into the arena.

"Takane and Sakura Mei," Yue noted. "I guess that only leaves Kaede and Ku Fei left to fight against Nodoka."

"I know." Nodoka said worriedly. Everyone else just nodded in sympathy. By now they'd heard about the apparent grudge that Negi's grandfather had against the librarian.

"Maybe Evangeline will cancel the match since they're both our classmates. There might be someone else left for you to fight Nodoka." Konoka said without much hope.

"I wouldn't count on it." Abigail said walking up behind the two. "Nicholas knows that the absolute worst opponent for a non-combat Ministra is a true fighter. You can bet that you'll be facing Ku Fei and Kaede and that if he thinks for a moment they're going easy on you, he'll have you both disqualified."

"What am I going to do?" Nodoka morosely asked no one in particular.

"Don't worry child. You'll have the rest of the day to figure something out. I'm here to get Nicholas. It seems an old friend of his needs to speak with him at length. The fighting will be suspended until then." Abigail reassured her.

"That was interesting timing." Yue noted suspiciously. "Who's the friend?"

"The headmaster, Konoe-san." Abigail replied mildly. "He brought up that he needed to speak to Nicholas while we were speaking earlier. He always did find me to be a quite fetching lass in my younger days." Nana said pushing up her impressive bust.

The two young librarians looked at the housekeeper skeptically. "I bet." They said in unison.

"I don't get it." Kotaro said innocently.

"I can't believe I'm saying this to you of all people Kotaro, but try not to think about it too much." Yue said seriously as she shivered and watched Setsuna patting Konoka on the back as she wretched uncontrollably.

* * *

Nodoka found herself once again in the library. It was strange how the reassuring presence of the books always made her feel better. Nodoka wandered among the many volumes wondering what exactly she was going to do. She was going to be facing Kaede and Ku Fei in the morning. She had never been overly close to the two girls, but they'd always been classmates. It was hard to believe they were now going to be her enemies.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later." Someone said behind her.

Nodoka spun around to find Evangeline leaning against a bookshelf.

"I'm sorry?" Nodoka asked timidly. Evangeline always did make her nervous.

"I was saying it had to happen sooner or later that you'd run into someone you'd actually have to fight in order to keep Negi to yourself." Evangeline said idly as she pulled a volume off the shelf beside her and flipped through it idly.

"I'm not keeping Negi to…" Nodoka started.

"Please, don't insult my intelligence. I'm older than all of you put together and if you can't see it you're blinder than that old fart that calls himself Negi's grandfather." Evangeline scolded harshly. "Despite Asuna and her almost maternal instincts for the boy, you're the closest thing he has to a girlfriend. Did you really think that you'd be able to love him without coming into conflict with some other woman eventually?"

"I hoped…" Nodoka said sadly.

"What? You hoped that suddenly once the two of you fell in love that you'd never have to worry again? You thought that you'd live happily ever after and raise a family of beautiful children while Negi worked as a teacher and you worked in the library? Wake up girl, Negi is a _mage_. I would have thought you girls would have understood that by now_. If_ Negi stays until you graduate, and _if_ he returns your feelings, you'll have a life of conflict ahead of you and I don't mean from demons. Negi has power that can only be dreamt of by most mage families. They will not be satisfied to wait a generation and try again with his children or his grandchildren. Whoever he stays with is going to be in for the _fight _of a lifetime that will _last_ a lifetime." Evangeline said advancing on Nodoka. Nodoka didn't realize she was up against the wall until she felt it pressing against her back and Evangeline was in her face.

"Is that what happened to you and Nagi?" Nodoka shot back.

The Dark Evangel recoiled as if slapped. "I do not like hearing that name."

"That's it isn't it? You loved Nagi, but he didn't love you back." Nodoka said standing her ground. "Well, Negi isn't Nagi. He's his own person, despite his desire to see his father again."

"And what makes you so sure? One night of holding him in your arms, singing to him under the moonlight, confessing how much your heart needs him? You have no idea what all Nagi and I shared." Evangeline said coming nose to nose with Nodoka.

"If he breaks my heart it is his to break, I will not back down and I won't lose. Even if it means I have to fight to keep him." Nodoka said angrily.

Evangeline settled back studying Nodoka carefully. "You know I think you will. I wondered just how far you would go. I've been curious for a while now."

Nodoka was speechless as the vampire turned to leave. "Prepare yourself girl, the coming battle will be difficult."

Nodoka breathed a sigh of relief. "Do you have any ideas how I'm going to beat Kaede and Ku Fei?"

Evangeline looked back at her with a smirk. "I wasn't talking about tomorrow. I fully realize that Negi isn't like his father. He is not so flippant as to give his heart to someone lightly. He is a bit young for me yet, so you have a head start. Besides, I'm an evil mage. It wouldn't consider it a challenge unless I was tearing him away from someone who loves him. Sleep well librarian, for someday when you look across the battlefield _I_ will be your opponent."

Nodoka gulped as Evangeline turned and walked away. "And as for Kaede and Ku Fei, just use what you know." The undying mage said with disinterest as she idly waved her hand without turning to look at her again as she left.

Nodoka found herself leaning against the wall heavily again. Evangeline as her opponent in a fight for Negi would take a lifetime to prepare for. Then again, she doubted _one_ lifetime would do the trick. Nodoka's blood ran cold.

Shaking herself, Nodoka continued through the library looking around at the books until she once again found herself in front of Nicholas' study. Nodoka quietly opened the door and looked around before stepping inside. No one was there at this time of day and she really didn't want any more encounters with anyone in the main library.

Nodoka quietly chuckled to herself as she looked at the mess Nicholas had made, strewing books all across the desk and using random small objects as bookmarks. She had a couple of tricks she'd worked out with Haruna, but nothing that would assure her victory against two of the most formidable fighters in the class.

Without anything else really to do, Nodoka began putting pens and pencils away and putting bookmarks in the various tomes before returning them to the bookshelves. An hour passed while she enjoyed the simple pleasure of arranging the books across the shelves and fastidiously tidying up the study. When she was done she took a look at her handiwork.

The study was spotless, with pens and scrolls neatly arranged across the desk, and the books returned to their proper places. Nodoka followed the bookcases up with her eyes as they widened in sudden realization.

_Use what I know…_

**A/N: And then, does Nicholas know that she knows? Or does she know the he knows that she knows? Or… aw screw it, nevermind.**


	11. Fighting

**A/N: I really need to keep up with ****responding to my reviews better than I've been doing. For those of you who just got a response to your reviews on chapter eight today, you have my apologies. As usual I don't own Negima.**

**Chapter 11) Fighting**

Negi looked down at Kaede waiting to meet Nodoka. The other girl had yet to arrive and the match was about to start. Nicholas seemed pleased with himself hoping that Nodoka had finally given up, but Negi knew the girl better than that.

"It would be better for the girl if she didn't show up." Nicholas said smugly. "Such a fragile, mousy, little girl has no place in combat."

"What takes more courage grandfather, to fight with confidence in yourself knowing you are able to rise to the challenge, or following someone into a fight in the hopes of being of some use to them with only faith that they will protect you?" Negi said turning his grandfather's own words from the day before against him.

Nicholas growled and glared at him. "You forget yourself grandson."

"No grandfather, I don't think so. Not this time." Negi said angrily as he refused to lower his gaze from the old man. He'd heard about what Galin had tried to do to Yue from Nodoka, and he didn't think it was coincidence that Galin was absent from the combat this morning. Regardless of the fact that his grandfather hadn't known what Galin would do, he had still been the one responsible for what happened.

His grandfather had tried to come between him and Nodoka and had in turn put one of his girls in jeopardy. The idea still burned inside Negi and he hated to think what would have happened if Kotaro hadn't been there. He also hated to think of what Galin might have done to Nodoka if he hadn't been with her.

The two stared at each other, fire blazing in each of their eyes. The two didn't back down until they heard the doors to the arena open.

The two glanced aside then to see Asuna enter and head for the gallery. Negi had asked her to hang around Nodoka in case Galin tried something else, despite his grandfather's assurances.

Nodoka entered a moment later.

* * *

It was the most ridiculous thing that anyone assembled had ever seen. Nodoka had her hair pulled back out of her eyes, which wasn't unusual, but was wearing a simple white one-piece swimsuit. She looked ready for a swim meet more than getting ready to fight for her right to remain with Negi.

Kaede sympathized with the girl, but Nicholas had made a compelling offer to her and Ku Fei. Eliminate Nodoka from the competition and he would recommend them to Negi for becoming his permanent partner. Kaede had to admit that she did care for Negi, perhaps not as deeply as some of the other girls, but she did believe just like all of them that he would grow to be a wonderful man someday and that any girl would be fortunate to have him. He would also need someone to protect him, and she knew she wasn't the only girl to feel the almost maternal need to protect him. If Nodoka proved more capable than she, then so be it.

Kaede looked across the room at the timid librarian that was to be her opponent. She knew it was foolish to underestimate any opponent, but in Nodoka's case it took some effort.

Evangeline looked around smugly waiting for each 'fighter' to announce they were prepared to continue. Nodoka opened her book and Kaede could already guess who it was attuned to.

"You needn't open your book Nodoka-dono, I have _no idea_ how you're going to defeat me." Kaede said politely.

Nodoka only smiled weakly, her book relaying to her the truth of Kaede's words. For once Kaede was happy that she was a member of the Baka Rangers and not a brilliant tactician. In this fight it would be working to her disadvantage.

"Begin!" Evangeline announced, stepping from between the combatants.

"It's not your thoughts I'm interested in." Nodoka replied, producing a familiar quill and ink.

"FOUL!" Nicholas cried from his viewing gallery. "She's using two artifacts!"

"You said yourself that the girls would be allowed to use anything they wished to bring with them into the matches. If you didn't want them using multiple artifacts you should have stipulated that in your rules. Her use of Haruna's artifact is allowable, and you will NOT interfere with this match until it is over. It has already begun, now sit down and await the outcome." Evangeline lectured with sadistic glee.

Kaede looked up at the old man and shrugged. "Apparently Springfield-sama realizes something I don't."

"Apparently so." Nodoka said from across the arena.

Kaede looked back to her and shrugged again. "Very well, here I come Honya-chan."

"I'm ready." The young woman replied.

Kaede charged across the ground separating her from her quarry and tried for a swift jab to disable the smaller girl mercifully. The jab was a bit stronger than she intended, knocking the girl from her feet and sending her reeling backwards. Kaede hated to harm her, but it couldn't be helped, better to get it over with quickly.

In a blink the girl was gone. Kaede looked around to find the girl standing behind her.

"I'm over here Kaede-san." Nodoka said meekly.

Kaede approached more slowly this time. Nodoka never moved, and Kaede watched carefully as once again she attacked, delivering a quick succession of solid blows to the shy little girl, and sending her to the ground. Once again she disappeared immediately afterwards.

"We're over here." Nodoka replied in an odd stereo.

Kaede turned to see two images of the same girl standing behind her. It then dawned on her what was going on. "You're drawing duplicates in my mind with Haruna's pen!"

"Correct!" Nodoka said in stereo again, as Kaede turned to see two more standing a few feet away.

"I guess I'll just have to defeat your illusions faster than you can draw them then." Kaede said creating sixteen of her clones and sending them into battle. Kaede began smashing illusions as quickly as she could, hoping to eliminate all the illusions as quickly as possible so she could look for some sign of what was sure to be an invisible librarian.

Kaede continued, smashing illusion after illusion until she was attacked from behind. Kaede spun to see two clones attacking her feebly. She quickly dispatched the two, flipping onto her hands to deliver a kick to the chest of each. Both disappeared swiftly.

"You've added in some real creations using her pen as well I see." Kaede noted as occasionally, one of her clones or herself would connect with a solid Nodoka. "Your attack strength still isn't good enough Nodoka-san."

"We'll see." Nodoka replied cryptically.

Again Kaede bent to the task of smashing Nodoka duplicates. It wasn't going too well, and the semi-real Nodoka clones added in weren't helping matters. She was simply creating them faster than she could destroy them.

"I see. That's why you wore a simple white bathing suit. It made you easier and faster to draw." Kaede concluded.

"Correct again." A chorus of clones replied. It was right about this time that Kaede met her first real resistance.

Kaede struck with a lightning jab at one clone only to have it block the attack. Seeing Nodoka block even a glancing blow from the kunoichi was enough to stun her for a moment. The clone however did not slow for a moment as it launched itself into a series of attacks that quickly pressed the taller girl back by weight of it coming from such an unlikely source.

* * *

"YOU IDIOT GIRL!" Nicholas roared from his seat. "Why can't that girl hear me?"

"I've no idea grandfather. Kaede tends to zone out everything else when she's fighting." Negi replied mildly. If his grandfather figured out that he'd erected a sound barrier to interrupt his grandfather's coaching from the stands he'd be toast, but fortunately his grandfather seemed too upset and distracted by Kaede's performance to notice.

* * *

It wasn't long until Kaede was thoroughly winded. Looking around she couldn't see any of her clones any more as the Nodoka army now had her hard pressed. The fighting level of the clones was on par with…

Suddenly realizing her mistake, Kaede banished her clones. With satisfaction she noticed her toughest opponents disappeared immediately. "You made me fight my own clones Nodoka-san. That was very smart of you. But how will you win now? I may be tired, but I'm still able to fight."

"Someone once told me that not all battles can be won by strength." Nodoka replied.

Kaede braced herself as all the clones rushed her at once. The time it had taken her until now had allowed Nodoka to create a veritable horde to attack her simultaneously. It wasn't like they were going to do much damage to the kunoichi so she settled in to block the worst of it. It wasn't until she heard the words 'Sim Tua Pars' escape Nodoka's lips that she knew that she'd miscalculated.

Kaede felt a light touch press against her arm, and heard the novice mage say something along the lines of 'Consurgo Mea Inimicus'.

Kaede nearly lost her breakfast as the spell flared to life with Negi's massive magic reservoir behind it and Kaede was hurled into the air. Upwards she flew until she slammed into the ceiling… hard. Everything went black after that.

Negi stood there in shock as Kaede's limp body settled to the ground. Nodoka was by her side immediately followed by Konoka, ready to heal the girl. Negi didn't realize he'd crossed the space until he was by Nodoka's side as she lifted up the larger girl. She'd taken a nasty blow to the head, but she was breathing. Konoka immediately began to ply her training.

"That… was a good strategy." Kaede replied weakly. "You kept me busy until you could create enough clones to allow you an opening in order to get your spell off on me. I'm impressed Honya-chan."

"I'm sorry Kaede-san." The librarian replied morosely wringing her hands together with worry. She was apparently just as surprised as anyone else at her victory. "I was only trying to levitate you so I could incapacitate you."

"Can you walk?" Evangeline asked aloofly.

"Yeah, I'm alright." Kaede said unsteadily as she slowly stood.

"Good, then get off the floor. Ku Fei is next." Evangeline stated coldly. Negi wondered why she was giving Nodoka such murderous looks all of a sudden, but decided not to ask.

"Wait." Nicholas said suddenly. "This has been a trying battle. Let the girl rest for a moment before we continue."

"What?" Everyone asked in unison at Nicholas' unexpected charity.

"As you would have it then." Eva said dismissively.

Negi knew something was up immediately, but didn't say anything as he saw his grandfather walked away with Ku Fei in tow. His grandfather was planning something.

"Nodoka-san, that was an impressive bit of strategy." Negi complimented.

"Thank you Negi-sensei." Nodoka replied shyly. "I remembered you mentioning a defensive spell that would levitate someone and I was going to try to incapacitate Kaede-san with it. I didn't expect it to lift her so roughly."

"I know. Look, Nodoka-san, please be careful. These girls are fighters and I'm sure that my grandfather is planning some sort of trick. Please, you don't have to…" Negi started.

"Yes I do sensei!" Nodoka blurted quickly. "I have to prove I am worthy to be by your side. I… I would do anything for you sensei, and by your side is where… I always want to be."

Negi could feel his blush in his cheeks, but could do little to prevent it. He had known about Nodoka's feelings ever since their trip to Kyoto when she had confessed her love for him and now she was doing all this for him. He hadn't even given her a response, not even after looking up at her as she cradled his head in her lap and sang to him beneath the moon and stars during the ball his grandfather had arranged. She was doing this because of how she felt for him, with only hope and faith that he might one day acknowledge her feelings.

Negi didn't know what to say. Part of him wanted to laugh for joy that someone would care for him so deeply, and part of him wanted to cry as he felt so low for not giving the girl a response.

Finally, Negi did the only thing he could think of to encourage her and to let her know that while he hadn't made up his mind about who he liked that he still appreciated her. As the two of them stood, Negi reached out and took Nodoka's hand, and while his grandfather wasn't looking he kissed her on the cheek. "Be careful."

Nodoka touched her cheek as she watched Negi retreat to his grandfather's viewing gallery. It was the first time he'd ever taken the initiative to kiss her. All the other times, she had been the one kissing him. She quickly suppressed the tear of joy that threatened to fall from her eye and focused on her match.

Ku Fei was coming back with a rather conspicuous amulet hanging around her neck. She also had a smile that looked like it belonged to the cat that ate the proverbial canary. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out something was up and it obviously had to do with her amulet.

"You won't be looking in my head, bookstore." The martial artist said smugly as she fingered the amulet around her neck.

"I assumed as much." Nodoka said opening her book and began focusing on her target. She needed time to complete the spell she'd taken from Nicholas' library. Hopefully, Ku Fei wouldn't charge in head first so she'd have time to complete her spell. She hadn't wanted to use this, for fear that Nicholas might figure out what she'd done, but against Ku Fei she didn't stand a chance otherwise. Nodoka pulled out her wand.

"So, would you like hear my 'preposition'?" Ku Fei announced.

* * *

Nicholas laid his face in his palms and rubbed his eyes wearily. "Negi, do _you_ have any idea what she's talking about?"

"Not a clue, grandfather."

* * *

Nodoka looked at Ku Fei, dumbstruck. "Uh, sure."

Ku Fei nodded. "Before…"

"That's a pretty good one." Nodoka said quickly.

"Huh?"

"Your preposition; that was a pretty good one."

"I not tell it yet."

"Yes you did."

"When?"

"Just now."

"But…"

"That's a pretty good one too."

"That not it either!" Ku Fei shouted in frustration.

Nicholas had finally had enough. "Oh, come on Evangeline; please end this battle of wits and get on to the one this Chinese girl's actually _fit_ for!"

Evangeline was already pinching the bridge of her nose. "Yes, for once I agree. Nodoka, quit mentally beating up on Ku Fei and let's get on to the physical beating, shall we?"

"Uh, sorry…" Nodoka replied in confusion.

"My head hurt…" Ku Fei whimpered.

Nodoka took a deep breath and whispered her spell. She just hoped it worked. "Practi Bigi Naru Tribuo Hic Unus Animus Per Mea Socius."

* * *

Negi felt the rush of power immediately, and knew something had happened. Despite not being able to use her book on Ku Fei, Nodoka still had it floating in front of her. He looked over briefly at his grandfather for some sign of what was going on, but his grandfather had a deep frown on his face as he watched the two girls face off.

Negi looked down at Nodoka, and his jaw nearly dropped off his face. Nodoka had taken a martial arts stance.

"It would appear grandson, that your librarian has been loose in my library." Nicholas said severely.

* * *

Nodoka prepared herself as Evangeline announced the start of the fight. Ku Fei rushed forward and dropped low before swinging her legs around in a sweep meant to carry her opponent off her feet.

Nodoka reacted immediately, flipping backwards onto her hands before jumping up into a somersault to avoid the follow through. When she landed, she didn't know whose eyes were bigger; Hers, Negi's, or Ku Fei's.

The young martial artist stood and then formally bowed before once again lowering herself into a more guarded stance and advancing slowly. Nodoka readied herself and circled her opponent with practiced grace. How many times had she played out this battle, a hundred? Two hundred?

Ku Fei launched a powerful strike straight for Nodoka's chest, which the librarian side stepped easily bringing her elbow in towards Ku Fei's head. The Chinese girl barely ducked in time to spin away from the attack before flipping on her hands and spinning her legs around to kick at her opponent.

The girl known as bookstore was not to be outdone however as she rolled clear before going on the offensive with her own series of sweeps and kicks.

* * *

"Does anybody understand what's going on here?" Asuna asked in a stunned whisper.

"Not a clue," Haruna muttered, "but it looks awesome."

* * *

Negi slowly turned to his grandfather as the impromptu martial arts tournament got underway in the arena beneath them. Nicholas was trembling in what looked like a strange mixture of horror, rage, and sadness.

"What's happening grandfather?" Negi asked innocently.

"My worst nightmares are turning into horrific reality." Negi heard him lowly utter to himself before he spoke more loudly. "Your girlfriend has tapped into the bond between the two of you. She has managed to draw upon not only your power but your skills as well. Tell me son, do you recognize her fighting style?"

Negi watched as Nodoka flowed through the stances with practiced ease. They were definitely his. She was even using the slight variation to the stances he tended to favor. "There's actually a spell which does this?"

"Yes." Nicholas said as he seemed to withdraw into himself. "It's only ever been cast by two others."

Negi looked at his grandfather and tried to read the torrent of emotions that were crossing his face. Below, Nodoka's battle had reached a fever pitch. Apparently, Ku Fei had noticed the similarities in his and Nodoka's fighting styles as well. "How can this be grandfather? Unless I am mistaken, Nodoka is using her book to work this spell."

"It takes a very… special… kind of partner to use the power of that spell." Nicholas said seeming to shrink in upon himself even further. He then looked off into the distance and his steely determination seemed to return. "I will NOT fail again."

* * *

Nodoka was breathing heavily. She had survived for nearly twenty minutes against the more experienced martial artist. Ku Fei was also visibly winded. Nodoka hadn't trained to be a fighter, but she had spent countless hours scaling sheer cliffs of bookshelves, rappelling down those cliffs; and pretty much becoming rather physically fit. Mahora librarians tended to be a hearty bunch after all.

"You using _his_ training." Ku Fei noted as the two circled each other warily. "You use book for that too?"

"It's a special little kind of magic I discovered while reading." Nodoka said smiling.

"Then… I WIN." Ku Fei shouted, launching herself into the air to strike down the book where it floated.

Seeing her opening, Nodoka retaliated with all her strength. While her spell allowed her to use Negi's skill, it didn't provide her with his agility or strength. Fortunately, she was naturally more agile and limber than he was so she'd been able to keep up with the high speed maneuvers his martial arts required. However his physical strength far exceeded her own.

Betting it all, Nodoka struck, throwing all her strength and weight into the counterstrike she drove into her classmate's abdomen knowing that if she missed she'd be leaving herself open to counter-attack. Ku Fei slammed her book shut with the force of the kick and sent it flying out into the arena just as the librarian knocked the wind out of her and then continued the arc of her punch to drive the other girl down into the ground.

Every bone in Nodoka's body shook from the force of the impact. She looked down at her opponent and prayed she hadn't been hurt too badly. Ku Fei lay there looking up, dazed and breathing heavily from the fist that still remained planted in her solar plexus.

Nodoka didn't realize it was over until Eva interrupted the two of them. "And… TEN! The Bookstore wins it."

A cheer went up from Nodoka's friends who rushed out to greet her and also to see about Ku Fei. Nodoka started to rise but Ku Fei stopped her with a hand on her wrist. "You trick me. Book not how you did spell."

"Yes, I'm sorry. My only hope was to make you go after the book so I could get an opening to attack you." Nodoka confessed.

"Then how you do spell?" Ku Fei asked in confusion.

Nodoka leaned down and whispered the answer into Ku Fei's ear. The rest of the girls gathered around as she explained her strategy. A look of profound shock crossed the martial artist's face as Nodoka spoke to her and then when she finished Ku Fei began to smile broadly.

"I glad I decided not to get up then." The diminutive Chinese girl whispered as she hopped to her feet.

Nodoka looked at her in open dismay. "You mean you weren't stunned?"

"No, silly, but it did hurt. You first person able to punch me that hard in long time. I think I owe you victory for coming that far. You not as strong as he is though." The girl whispered back smiling.

Nodoka couldn't help but smile back and nod. Ku Fei was a bigger friend than she could have imagined. All the other girls clustered around the two of them and Nodoka was suddenly jostled by all the congratulations.

"I can't believe you won!" Asuna said in amazement. "Honya-chan, that was simply astounding. Everyone one was so surprised to see you come through this match."

"Stupefied." Nicholas agreed flatly, showing no expression on his face as he approached with Negi who ran past him to check on his girls. "I suppose we'll be settling this issue between the two of us tomorrow Negi."

"Tomorrow then grandfather." Negi replied stoically. He then softened and turned to the rest of the girls. "Let's get out of here and go get something to eat."

Everyone turned to leave, but before they got very far, Nicholas stopped them in their tracks. "Miyazaki!"

Everyone stood dead still and Nodoka turned to the old mage in trepidation. If he had recognized…

"The book you read that spell from, did you read all of them?" The old man demanded.

Nodoka gulped feeling more fear now than when she'd opened the book promising to hold spells specifically designed for Ministra Magi. "Y-Y-Yes, Springfield-sama."

"The last spell in that book, did you read it as well?" Nicholas asked, showing no sign as to his emotion.

Nodoka balked. She didn't want to admit it, but she had read that spell, and had determinedly written it down in case of an emergency. Apparently, Nicholas knew what book she'd gotten her spells from so lying about it now would probably be useless. "Yes, sir."

Nicholas was silent for several moments as he seemed to be studying the girl intently. "Never, ever, cast that spell girl. If you do, Negi will never forgive you." The old man said before turning on his heels and striding purposefully out of the arena.

"Come on, everyone, let's go." Haruna shouted suddenly to break the pall that had fallen over everyone. "Let's celebrate! I say we raid the wine cellar and get drunk!"

"Haruna!" Nodoka shot back, aghast.

"Revenge!" Ku Fei and Kaede shouted triumphantly grabbing up the hapless librarian and resolutely darting off in the direction of almost certain involuntary intoxication, bad singing, and shameful tattoo artistry.

"I'll help!" Haruna cried.

"We'll watch!" Konoka added, grabbing Setsuna and taking off after the lot of them.

"Yue, help!" Nodoka cried helplessly.

"Actually, I think I'm going to watch too." Yue replied with an unusual smirk on her face.

"Um, girls? We really shouldn't…" Negi started.

"Don't worry, Baka-Negi. I'll make sure the pictures don't make it to the internet." Asuna said with a laugh as she started after them. "Don't get the wrong idea. Those two are just as happy for her as the rest of us."

Nodoka looked back to see Negi standing there bewildered, and Kotaro picking up her book.

"What do you mean; 'you were hoping to download them'?" Kotaro asked innocently, as Negi snatched the book away.

**A/N: There you have it, the Nodoka combat chapter. I want you all to know this entire story and this chapter in particular were the result of a comment made months ago by someone who said this couldn't be done. Or at least words to that effect, it's been so long ago I can't even remember. I hope I did it justice. A.A. :)**


	12. Dueling

**A/N: I do not own Naruto. I do however have good news, and I'm not talking car insurance. My friend Avetre Maevrin has agreed to make illustrations for this story. I have updated my author page with a link to the site that has the illustrations for chapter one. Thanks Mae!**

**Chapter 12) Dueling**

"I don't know if we should be doing this Yue." Nodoka complained as the small pair wandered through the library.

"Look you owe me this much at least for keeping you from getting a hangover." Yue whispered as she looked around the corner for anyone who might be standing guard at the library.

"Nicholas-sama already knows I've been in his library once, he might get REALLY angry if we go back now." Nodoka whimpered. "Besides, you could have stopped them before I got the tattoo."

"Nonsense, you can get it removed with magic anytime you want to, besides," Yue said looking back at her friend, "I'm sure Negi sensei might like to see it."

Nodoka quickly wrapped her arms around to her bottom while a deep blush covered her cheeks. Yue sighed, Negi would probably think it was cute, and the tattoo too. "Who knew Haruna could draw that well drunk."

"Well, it _was_ her magic quill." Nodoka reasoned. It wasn't like it was a permanent tattoo.

"I can't remember, what kind of butterfly was it?" Yue asked, a bit foggy herself from the afternoon's sampling of exotic drinks. Thankfully after one of their parties in Eva's resort she'd had the presence of mind to find a spell to dispel the after effects.

"It wasn't, she drew me as a fairy." Nodoka recalled.

"Yeah, but you DID have butterfly wings." Yue recalled. "Blue ones if memory serves correctly."

"You looked?" Nodoka asked uneasily.

"Only once." Yue reassured her. "Haruna is such a perv…"

Finally getting Nodoka distracted enough to keep her from fully realizing how dangerous their little enterprise was, Yue rounded the corner and slipped into the forbidden library of the Springfield family. Nodoka looked around apprehensively half expecting Nicholas to jump out of the shadows at any moment like some sort of boogie man.

"So where is this book you found?" Yue asked looking across the rows of dangerous looking reading materials.

"It's over here." Nodoka pointed out.

"That's odd." The serious philosopher commented.

"What is?" The librarian replied apprehensively, sensing some sort of magical trap.

"All the other books are ordered, but this one is kept out of order and alone here by the desk, I wonder why?" The young girl pondered.

"I think Springfield-sama might have written it or something. That was what drew my attention to the book in the first place." Nodoka said pulling out the heavy leather tome and laying it on the desk.

"I don't think so." Yue said examining the cover. "It says here the author is C. Springfield, Nicholas starts with an 'N'."

"I don't know, maybe someone else in the family?" The librarian wondered.

"Maybe, regardless, it seems Nicholas keeps this book close to the desk." Yue said opening it and thumbing through the pages. "There's quite a lot of spells in here though."

Neither of them had very much time to read however since once again they heard someone coming. The two looked at the desk and then at each other.

"Not again." They said quickly in unison before putting the book back and hiding behind the mysterious black drape behind the desk.

The door opened to admit Nicholas followed closely by Abigail. "You _knew_ that Miyazaki girl had been in the library and didn't tell me."

"I was here with her Nicholas, how was I supposed to know she'd return and read the books." The matronly maid shot back. "Besides, what's done is done."

"I will not allow anything like that to happen again." Nicholas said as he got closer. Yue risked discovery to peek out and see what was going on.

Nicholas was behind the desk and had pulled out the same book they had been looking at before. "What are you going to do? I know you could never bring yourself to destroy her book."

"Were that I had destroyed it when Celia first wrote it." Nicholas said sadly. "No, I think I'm going to take it with me to my room for safe keeping while the Miyazaki girl is here. If she hasn't copied down the words to these spells already, then I'll make sure she doesn't in the future."

Yue watched as a black cat trotted into the room and leaped up onto the desk, meowing incessantly.

"Oh, stop your complaining Galin." Nicholas replied testily. Then with a wave of his hand, the cat was gone and Galin was sitting on the side of the desk naked.

"You know how much I hate that old man." Galin said hopping down.

Yue tried to suppress the gulp and averted her eyes. She really didn't want to see any more of Galin like that.

"Just go put some clothes on, and remember your place. You might be my familiar, but I will not allow you to run around doing as you please." Nicholas scolded shaking his finger at the cat-turned-human. "If I see you anywhere near the girls' rooms, I'll turn you back and leave you as I found you; picking sardines out of dumpsters for your supper."

Galin seethed at the reprimand. "Yes… master."

"Now, go put some clothes on. Tomorrow is the final challenge and I want you ready." Nicholas commanded. "Tomorrow I want you to keep Asuna busy, while I deal with Negi."

"What about the other two?" Galin asked seriously.

"I don't expect them to be a problem. Negi will have his hands full so they won't be able to draw upon much of his power without causing him trouble. I've got a few surprises in store for the little one that might prove educational." Nicholas said smugly.

"Now don't go over exerting yourself Nicholas." Abigail said with open worry.

"Yes, _master_, at your age you might just hurt yourself." Galin sneered.

"That will be quite enough of your cheek, Galin. Don't make me regret changing you back. You don't know how close I came to banishing you permanently over what you did to Yue." Nicholas said hotly.

"If it had been Nodoka, you wouldn't be complaining so much." Galin shot back.

The slap echoed through the library ominously. "I _said_ that will be quite enough of your cheek. Just be sure you're ready in the morning. Now get out."

Galin glared murderously at the old mage, but did as he was told. He skulked from the room fuming. "Are you certain it's safe to trust him, in this form?" Abigail asked after the young man left the room. "Considering his nature, after all."

"He will do nothing. He knows the penalty for defying me. Now, I had better be getting off to bed myself. I'll need plenty of rest for tomorrow." Nicholas said wearily as he headed for the door.

"Nicholas." Abigail said seriously.

"Yes?"

"Please don't over do it tomorrow." Abigail said worriedly.

"I promise, I'll go easy on the boy."

"That's not what I'm talking about Nicholas." Abigail said quickly.

Yue watched as she reached out and touched his arm. Nicholas only looked at her sadly before shaking his head. "Don't you think we're a little too old to be acting like lovesick children?"

"Nicholas, you know what I mean and you know how I feel. I just don't want anything to happen. You can't use magic like you used to." Abigail said quietly.

Nicholas let out a long sigh. "I promise I won't overdo it, now I'd better get some sleep."

Yue watched the two of them go and fought back the urge to swear. Nicholas had taken the book she wanted to read. Shaking her head in disgust she turned around as Nodoka stepped from behind the black drape.

Nodoka was looking at her in puzzlement as Yue looked at her, or rather past her, in astonishment. Nodoka looked up at the painting that had been concealed behind the black drape and sucked in a stunned breath of her own. The two of them then slowly turned to look at each other, each wondering what to do next.

"We better go get Asuna." Nodoka said seriously.

"Will she even believe us?"

"I don't know, but she needs to see this." The pale librarian said looking back up at the familiar bells.

All thoughts of the match forgotten, the two girls raced from the library and headed for their rooms. Tomorrow was going to prove to be an interesting day to say the least.

* * *

High above the castle in the night sky a shadowy figure circled like a vulture watching its dying meal. Things were almost set to begin. Tomorrow, the House of Springfield would finally fall. The shadow circled, waiting and watching for the signal that it would relay to its master that everything was ready.

* * *

Nodoka stifled a yawn. She had been up late. Not the wisest decision before the final match they would have to endure, but Asuna had been adamant. They had gone to tell the larger girl and it had taken all they could do to prevent her from returning to the library to see the painting. Why Nicholas had a painting of Asuna in his study was beyond Nodoka, but it seemed that Negi's grandfather had already chosen the girl he wanted to be Negi's partner.

Nodoka looked over at Asuna to find her staring across the ring at Nicholas as the doors opened and he entered with Galin by his side. Galin strutted in ahead of him with his twin rapiers at the ready, his easy and relaxed stance ready to fall into combat in a moment's notice. His usual smirk played across his lips as he ogled both Nodoka and Yue hungrily.

Next to her, Kotaro let out a low growl. Kotaro had begun getting very attached to Yue. Despite his nature, Nodoka felt sure it was more than puppy love. At least, she _hoped_ it was. If given time, she was sure that he would make a good match for Yue. It would definitely make her life easier.

The rest of the girls stood around waiting for Nicholas as he strolled easily into the ring behind his familiar. "Welcome ladies, to the final round. Here we will test Negi's ability to fight alongside you. Now for the ground rules, only you Ministra who have managed to complete your previous trials will be allowed to assist Negi in his battle against me. Galin will be my partner for this trial and we will fight until everyone is unconscious, incapacitated, or yields."

Nodoka didn't really like the way he looked at her when he said 'yield', but she said nothing. "The rest of you will be allowed to watch as spectators now, dismissed."

Galin looked across at Yue before flashing a sly wink and blowing her a kiss. "Your mine now, love."

The growl from Kotaro became louder as he stepped forward only to have Yue put a restraining hand on his arm. "Nicholas!" Kotaro barked rudely. "I want into this fight."

Nicholas raised an eyebrow at the outburst but kept his peace. He then turned to Evangeline. "If the judge has no complaints, I do not."

Evangeline merely shook her head to the negative. Nicholas then turned to head back to their side of the arena to begin, his robe fluttering out behind him as he turned swiftly. Nodoka caught just the barest hint of a chuckle.

"Yue, I think we just got played." Nodoka remarked seriously.

"Did you use your book?" Kotaro asked.

"No, her brain." Yue snapped irritably. "Nicholas is planning something and you played straight into it."

"How did I play into it? How can it be bad to have more people on your side?" Kotaro shot back defensively.

"Exactly my point Kotaro, why would Nicholas agree to allow himself a greater handicap?" Yue explained patiently. "Whatever you might think, Nicholas wanted you in this fight. I suspect that's why he allowed, and possibly even directed Galin to say such things."

Kotaro seemed hurt at being considered I liability. "I promise Yue, I'll fight hard. I'm not letting that wretched thing anywhere near you."

Yue let out a resigned sigh. Whatever trap Nicholas had in store, they'd already fallen for it, so there was no sense in beating up Kotaro over it. "I know you will." Yue said apologetically. She then gave Kotaro's arm a squeeze before releasing him. Nodoka may have been imagining things, or it may have been wishful thinking, but the exchange almost looked… affectionate.

Storing her thoughts for consideration later, Nodoka pulled out her book as Negi activated everyone's pactio and funneled his energy into them. Nodoka breathed deeply the intoxicating feel of Negi's soft warm energy seeping into every fiber of her being. As his power entered her she blushed at the feel of having this closeness with him that most girls never got to experience with the people they loved. She steeled her determination that she was NOT going to lose this feeling, or Negi.

"Lord Springfield." Asuna said seriously. Yue and Nodoka whipped their head around to stare at the girl apprehensively.

"Yes, child?" Nicholas replied in boredom.

"After this is over, I want to know why my picture is hanging in your study." Asuna said bluntly.

All the girls went deathly silent, and Nodoka imagined that the guilty look on her face was probably as bad as the one on Yue's.

Nicholas stared at her for a long time. No one said a word, and Nodoka was a little worried when he glanced at Yue and her. Finally though, he nodded. "Very well, if you win this match, I will explain. I suppose it will have to be the time."

Nodoka barely had time to think, much less react, as Evangeline gave the signal and the fight began. Before she even realized it, Galin had crossed the distance and was nearly on them all. Kotaro was in front of Yue in an instant as was Asuna in front of Negi. Instead of Yue though, Galin locked up with Asuna in front of Negi as he focused his energy for spell casting.

* * *

"My what a pretty big sword!" Galin complimented.

"Jealous?" Asuna shot back.

"Oh, come now cutie, size doesn't always matter." Galin said with a leer.

* * *

Nodoka was stunned at how quickly and ferociously Negi launched himself at this grandfather. "Centum Spiritus Lucis Coeuntes Sagitent Inimicum"

A hundred magical arrows flared to life as Negi unleashed a powerful barrage against the old man of the castle. The glow from the power bathed the entire arena in light burning away the shadows as they raced towards Nicholas. The old man never moved as he gazed at the magical death coming for him and almost lazily raised his palm to the barrage. "Consulo" he said simply.

Suddenly, Negi and his companions found themselves on the receiving end of the barrage as the magical arrows bounced against Nicholas' shield to rain about the arena in a torrent of destruction.

Nodoka found herself caught up in Negi's arms, which would have been wonderful if he hadn't been bouncing and jumping around trying to avoid the deadly hail around him. She looked over briefly to find Kotaro carrying Yue in a similar fashion. Asuna and Galin were caught up in their own battle and had pretty much ignored the falling arrows thanks to Asuna's magic canceling ability.

* * *

"You're pretty quick, hot stuff." Galin once again taunted as he tried to slip under Asuna's guard. "Now just stand still a moment while I stick this in you."

"You're going to need more than you've got." Asuna retorted, blocking the attack and sending Galin scooting backwards from the force of her parry.

* * *

"Way to go, genius!" Kotaro shot over at the boy mage.

"What power!" Yue whispered breathlessly as she stared at Nicholas in apprehension. Nodoka knew enough about magic from her own studies to know that to deflect something that serious with just a wave of the hand required immense strength.

"Master, I could use some power!" Galin shouted as Asuna's mighty blade sent him skidding backwards yet again.

Nicholas merely muttered something quickly and snapped his fingers. Asuna quickly found her strikes parried by the lithe swordsman and his thin seeming blades. Now she was the one pushed back as his rapiers danced and carved a path through earth and even stone as he advanced.

* * *

"Not man enough to handle me yourself?" Asuna sneered at the rogue as his enhanced strength helped him to press her back.

"I'm just making sure you feel it when I thrust." Galin responded with aplomb.

* * *

"Let's do it!" Kotaro shouted, as he and Negi set down the girls and turned their attention back on Nicholas.

Nodoka opened her book and Yue pulled her own as well, each preparing to help in whatever ways they could.

Nodoka attuned to Nicholas, and read too late what was going to happen as Negi and Kotaro charged the elderly mage. "Sensei, LOOK OUT!"

As the two charged forward however, their fate had been sealed as Kotaro's impetuousness led him headlong into Nicholas. The mage blurred momentarily as he translocated himself behind the two. "Mentis Dominatus", Nicholas shouted as he slapped Kotaro across the back of the head.

Negi stopped and used his instant movement to reverse his direction to go after his grandfather only to have Kotaro, block his attack.

"Kotaro what are you doing?!" Negi shouted.

Kotaro didn't answer, but immediately began laying into Negi with wild abandon. "It's a mental domination spell!" Yue shouted to her sensei. "Kotaro is under Nicholas' influence."

"Yue, I need a counter-curse!" Negi said while dodging the claws of his friend and rival.

"I don't think so." Nicholas said as he clapped his hands together.

Yue dropped her book bag as two stone hands sprang from the ground to lift her up and envelop her in their earthen embrace. Nodoka herself only barely evaded the attack, having seen it coming only scant seconds before. "Nodoka, my book!"

Nodoka nodded as Yue prepared to summon her slimes at Nicholas, only to find another hand of stone covering her mouth. Nodoka picked up Yue's books and turned to find Nicholas looking down at her.

* * *

Asuna grunted as Galin pressed her back to the wall. His rapiers locked over her own massive blade, and his super strength exceeded her own that she was receiving from her pactio bond to Negi. Galin leaned in close as her arms trembled to hold him at bay. His hot breath brushed her cheek as he loomed over her. "Just wait, I'll have one of you princesses as _my_ pet before this is over."

"In your dreams, hairball." Asuna spat. "You know, for someone who's really a pussy cat, you can be a real…"

* * *

"My apologies, Yue-chan, but I can't have you interfering, and this Kotaro should be enough to keep Negi busy for a few moments. Well girl, _now_ what are you going to do?" Nicholas said turning to Nodoka. He began walking forward as Nodoka slowly began to back away from him. "Your mage is in danger, the other Ministra are out of commission, and you face a full blown mage on your own. Whatever will you do? There's no one to protect you, no one to save you, and no place to run. You have no hope of defeating me, give up this childish fantasy and accept the fact that you are nothing but a burden to him and yield."

Nodoka opened Yue's book and let it float in front of her beside her own. "I don't care."

"What was that?"

"I said I don't care. I don't care if you defeat me as long as I do my best for him. I love Negi and I will NEVER abandon him no matter what I have to go through. Even if I'm not his Ministra I will stay by his side for as long as he will let me because I love him and nothing you can do is going to stop that." Nodoka shot back passionately.

"Then let it be on your own head then." Nicholas said raising his hands.

The books in front of Nodoka flared to life. She had been practicing and training hard with Yue for a moment like this and now she hoped it paid off. "Spiritus Palam Aeris Tribuo Hic Unus Econtra Navitus!"

Magical bolts of stone erupted from the earth before Nicholas barreling toward Nodoka with deadly force and accuracy only to be deflected by the counter-spell she had managed to erect. Such spells could deflect far more powerful attacks with less energy, but were only effective if you knew what elements your opponent would be attacking with. Yue had developed the strategy that either of the two of them could use in case the other was put out of commission but they hadn't tried it before now.

"Impressive, but let's see how long you can keep it up." Nicholas sneered in disgust.

Nodoka's book flared to life again, its power reading his thoughts and displaying the spell, which Yue's artifact immediately looked up the counter-spell for. As Nicholas began reciting his spell, Nodoka was already reciting her own. "Spiritus Palam Fons Tribuo Hic Unus Econtra Navitus!"

This time a torrent of water rose up before her to quench the fiery darts hurled at her by Nicholas. For several minutes, Nodoka countered Nicholas' spells reaching out to counter element for element, hoping that she could last. If she could only keep him distracted long enough for his spell to elapse so that Asuna could handle Galin, they might have a chance.

Nodoka had nearly reached her limit, when she felt Negi's power rushing through her. Fighting with Kotaro, he still had a lot of his magical reserves left. He was sending it to her now, even as Kotaro had him to the ground and the two struggled rolling around in the dirt like… well, like two ten year old boys fighting in a schoolyard.

The transfer of energy had not gone unnoticed by Nicholas either. "It seems my grandson continues to defy me." Nicholas noted clinically. He then looked at Nodoka with a broad smile on his face. "I give you credit for lasting this long child, but I fully realize what you're intending. Did you honestly think that a mage with more battle experience than all the mage teachers at Mahora Academy combined would be so foolish as to allow his spell to elapse that was empowering his allies? All you have done is expend your energy needlessly. Now Negi will tire long before Kotaro and he will lose. You are nothing more than a burden."

"I guess we'll see." Nodoka said keeping her books prepared.

"Now I suppose I'll show you a couple of tricks. It's the least I can do to reward you for coming this far." Nicholas said smiling. Nodoka looked down at her book to see it go dark. Nothing displayed on the page, and Nodoka felt fear creep into her heart as she looked up at Nicholas in horror. "A true mage knows how to empty his mind, to protect himself from prying eyes."

Nicholas' strike was as sudden as anything she had ever seen. He moved forward gracefully in a fluid motion, hurling his magic toward her in one swift strike. The air around Nodoka grew thick as she realized her mistake. An unincanted spell moved more swiftly than those that required incantation, and she didn't even know what the incantation would have been because Nicholas had blocked her from his mind.

It seemed like the world slowed down as the jolt registered in her chest lifting her from her feet and hurling her backwards. Her book and Yue's both reverted to their card form as they went flying off in random directions. The bolt of pure air felt like a hurricane brought against her in an instant. She'd never been hit by a runaway truck, but she imagined the feeling would have been similar. Nodoka soared through the air, striking the ground and skipping like a stone across a pond for a few bounces.

Nodoka lay there stunned and unable to move, her breath coming in ragged gasps. She closed her eyes to clear the cobwebs from her mind after getting smacked like a rag doll across the ring. Nicholas walked over and was standing over her as he looked down dispassionately. "No offense child, I've honed my skills from decades of battle. I've been using that strategy since before you were born."

Leaving her, Nicholas then turned to Kotaro and Negi as they struggled. He walked over slowly, raising his hands to prepare a spell that would end the fight and Negi's chances of keeping his partners.

The sound of the dull thud echoed across the arena. Negi looked up at his grandfather as he stared down at him before his eyes rolled back in his head and he slumped forward. He fell to the ground with 'A Discourse on Logic' lying on the ground next to him and a nasty bump on the back of his head.

"I just made that strategy up." Nodoka said as she wobbled on her feet. She'd shakily risen to pull out the last weapon she had and had thrown it to connect with the back of Nicholas' skull.

* * *

All around the arena, the magic that Nicholas had been using began to die. Asuna looked up at Galin as he pressed her against the wall, feeling as he did, his strength leaving him.

"Aww, did it go limp?" Asuna said with a feral grin as she pushed the offensive fighter off of her. Galin landed only to find Asuna's sword arcing through the air towards his neck. Without his strength to stop the blade, he redirected it over his head with his rapiers only to find the brute girl's leg coming in for the follow through.

Galin lifted up into the air and sailed a good ten feet from the shot he took to the nether regions. His mercifully unconscious form slammed into the ground as he began to involuntarily wretch from the blunt force trauma.

Asuna swished her sword to the side before giving her friends watching a smile and big thumbs up and a one liner that would make Bob Barker proud. "Remember kids, help control the pet population by having your pet spayed or neutered."

Asuna then turned her attention to smashing the stone hands imprisoning Yue, before turning to take care of Kotaro. She charged forward to knock the possessed dog demon off Negi and finish the fight. Kotaro was shaking his head groggily as she rushed up and looked up just in time to scream "ASUNA! NO!" before getting, whacked, sent flying, and packed off to dreamland, in that order.

Asuna cringed as Kotaro punched a hole in the wall. She looked down at Negi guiltily who merely sighed patiently. "Oopsy?"

**A/N: I will hopefully be updating next Friday night as usual, but I am going to be traveling over the holidays so if it comes late, please forgive me.**


	13. Discovering

**A/N: I'm quickly catching up to where I've written to, so I better get the lead out and finish the last few chapters. But enough of my belly-aching, on with the story; I don't own Negima, but thanks to my in-laws I now own a beautiful set of stainless steel cheese knives and cutting board.**

**Chapter 13) Discovering**

She could hear the crying before she opened the door. She knew she had. Inside, the boy sat on his bed and rocked himself slowly back and forth. Yue watched Kotaro on the bed and then silently shut the door. She stepped away for a few paces and then made it a point of walking up normally and knocking lightly before she put her hand on the knob.

"Come in." The reply came from inside.

Yue opened the door to a scene that was completely different from the one she'd seen a few moments earlier. Kotaro was standing, and was daubing ointment on the few small scratches and bruises he had on his hands and arms. If the previous scene had existed, there was no sign of it now except for the vision in Yue's mind.

"Oh, hello." Kotaro said casually as he doctored his wounds.

"Are you okay?" Yue asked as she took the ointment away from the boy and sat him back down on the bed. She then took a seat next to him and started treating his wounds; properly this time.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It takes more than a little hit in the head to shake me up." Kotaro said with broad grin.

"That wasn't what I was talking about." Yue said inspecting his hands as she worked.

Kotaro was silent and Yue didn't look up at him. She knew it would probably embarrass him if she looked into his eyes and saw the hurt there. The young dog demon surprised her though when he spoke. "Yeah, I know. I smelled you earlier."

Yue nodded and continued to work without saying anything. The question simply wouldn't remain locked away inside of her though without being given voice. "Then why did you let me see you like that?"

"I was… I don't know. I don't know how to say it, I don't know if you'd understand, and I don't even know if _I_ even really understand." Kotaro said in a rush. "It's just… part of me wanted you to see me."

Yue thought about it for a little while until she finished wrapping up Kotaro's hands like a prize fighter. She then looked up into his eyes. "I think I understand."

"You do?"

"You wanted me to see a part of you that you don't like showing to other people." The philosophical young sorceress concluded looking at him for some sign that she was right. She'd finally concluded that yes, Kotaro did care for her deeply.

"Sort of, I guess. Actually, it was more of something that I wanted." Kotaro said quietly.

Yue looked at him puzzled. "Oh? What did you want?"

Kotaro didn't answer, but his eyes immediately began to brim with tears. That was the only warning Yue got before Kotaro launched himself forward. If he had been older, she probably would have thought him a pervert the way he planted his face in her non-existent cleavage. As it stood however, all she could do was reach up and cradle his head as he muffled his sobs against her chest. Yue didn't know when he'd put his arms around her waist, but right now she wasn't going to kick him away when he was so… vulnerable. Besides, she figured she owed him this much comfort at least as it was apparently what he had wanted when she saw him earlier.

Yue rocked him back and forth almost like a mother comforting her child until his crying subsided. "Better?"

"A little." Kotaro confided as he kept his head against her chest. "I'm sorry."

"It wasn't any trouble."

"No, I mean, I nearly cost Negi his victory. I got played. Nicholas used me and there was nothing I could do to stop him. I wasn't strong enough. I wasn't good enough!" Kotaro said vehemently as he pulled away.

Yue pulled him back to her chest, mostly to keep him from seeing her own distraught expression. "Kotaro, it's alright. Nicholas beat me too. I was powerless against his magic. If Nodoka hadn't managed to dodge, we would have lost."

"And it would have all been my fault." Kotaro moaned.

"Kotaro, you made a mistake. As long as you learn from it, it will make you stronger." Yue chose her words carefully so that he might draw the most comfort from them.

"Not this time. My mind simply isn't strong enough to handle an attack like that. I'm weak and there's no way I'll ever be able to build up my mind as long as I devote all my time to training as a fighter." Kotaro said sadly.

"How do you think I feel?" Yue added. "I got owned. My offensive capabilities are practically nil. I'm just the strategist. In a real fight, I'd just be a burden."

"You're not a burden." Kotaro said as he pulled his feet up onto the bed. He never released Yue, so he just sprawled out with his arms around her and his head in her lap. She started to protest, but then gave up and just let the boy rest. "Besides, at least you can get better from training. There's no cure for being stupid."

"You're not stupid either Kotaro." Yue chided. "You can always defend your mind."

"How?" Kotaro said jumping up to look at her. Kneeling there on all fours, Yue had to hold in the laugh. He looked like an eager puppy.

"Well, if you make a pactio with a mage, I was reading that part of the pactio bond allows a mage to defend the mind of his Ministra, or in your case Minister Magi." Yue explained patiently. "Maybe you could get Negi to do the pactio for you and…"

Yue stopped as she watched the twitch on Kotaro's eye growing more pronounced as his apprehension increased. "I… am… not… kissing… another… boy…" Kotaro said lowly.

Yue again had to stifle her facial expressions. If Negi and Kotaro ever found that manga Haruna made, she'd probably be able to forget ever seeing the light of a new day. "Well, maybe you could find a girl…"

The sudden realization of what Yue was saying suddenly struck her. She looked at Kotaro in absolute horror. "Oh no…"

"You're a girl." Kotaro noted.

"I don't think…"

"And I'm a boy." Kotaro continued.

"This does not bode well." Yue stated as she realized Kotaro was leaning really close to her on the bed. How did she keeping getting herself into these situations?

"I could kiss you and become your partner." Kotaro concluded.

"Then I'd loose my artifact." Yue countered.

"Negi can get you a new one now that you're his student."

"I'm too young to have a partner."

"Negi's only ten."

"I'm still in love with Negi."

"You're in love with me too."

"I'm still… wait a minute." Yue said perplexed. She hoped she wasn't blushing.

"You didn't say you weren't."

"I didn't say I was either. You tricked me." Yue said pensively.

"You mean _I _tricked _you_? I find that hard to believe. You're smarter than I am." Kotaro said still grinning as he stood up.

"I can't think straight around you." Yue shot back.

"Same here; told you that you were in love." Kotaro sneered lightly.

"I'm not confessing to anything." Yue said stubbornly.

"So, do you want to?" Kotaro said suddenly very serious. "I promise Yue, I'll never let anyone hurt you. I'll lay down my life if it means keeping you safe."

Kotaro offered her his hand and Yue sat there staring at it. In truth Negi had told her he could get her another book that acted similarly to her own. She had even seen some in the magical library of his grandfather. To have someone always there to defend her…

"I'll draw the circle."

* * *

"How is he?" Negi asked as Abigail stepped out of the bedroom.

"He'll be fine, he just needs to rest. I don't envy him the headache he's going to have in the morning though." Abigail replied with a wry grin. "It serves the old fool right for acting like he's a young pup."

Asuna looked at the old maid and then at the door to the master's bedroom, sighing. "He's supposed to tell me why he has a painting of me in his study."

Abigail looked at her skeptically. "The master doesn't have a painting of you in his study, what are you talking about?"

"Yes he does, Yue and Nodoka saw it. It hangs behind his desk and is covered with a black velvet curtain." Asuna told her straightly.

Asuna noticed Abigail's sudden startled expression. "Well, I wouldn't know anything about that. Well, I must be going now."

Asuna watched as the woman turned and nearly fled from the two of them. Asuna glanced at Negi and then chased after the woman who began to pick up speed until she was nearly running down the hallway away from her. Baka red though was a champion sprinter and quickly overtook the aged woman. "Please, Abigail, you know something about the painting don't you? Nicholas already promised he'd tell me."

"What the master knows is for the master to tell child!" Abigail cried desperately, turning down a hall and openly fleeing. Asuna and Negi followed after, neither of them content to let the confrontation end so easily.

"Nana! Please, wait!" Negi called after her. The old woman ducked into a doorway and as it just so happened, it was the library. The two kids charged in after her cornering her between two rows of books.

"Now, what's this you two are about? Can't you see I'm just a poor old nursemaid trying to go about her duties?" Abigail cried plaintively as she tried to get past Negi and then Asuna unsuccessfully.

"What do you know?" Asuna demanded.

"Nothing of consequence, the two of you will just have to wait until the master…" Abigail started.

"I don't care what 'the master' knows. I want to know what _you_ know about it." Asuna said as she stepped up and took hold of both of Abigail's hands in her own. "Please, just let me see it, and I'll wait and talk to Nicholas-sama about it."

Abigail seemed to waver but finally nodded. She then led Asuna and Negi to the room where the painting was kept. Abigail opened the door and turned to leave in haste until Asuna stopped her.

Negi walked around his grandfather's desk and pulled back the curtain to reveal the young woman painted there. Indeed Asuna looked up at a perfect version of her face, and she even had the bells in her hair, but something was definitely not right.

"It looks just like Asuna!" Negi said looking at the portrait.

"No, it isn't." Asuna said darkly.

"What do you mean, it's your face."

"Look closer Negi, what's different about the two of us?" Asuna asked quietly, rage simmering.

It took Negi a moment before he blushed deeply. "Well, it's not like those are the first things I look at."

"What kind of pervert is your grandfather to make a picture of me that looks like I…" Asuna started before the slap silenced her words.

"Don't you DARE say such a thing about the master! He is NOT a pervert! You have no idea the things he's…" Abigail spat hotly before coming to her senses. "I… I'm sorry… It's just…"

Asuna quelled her anger and looked at the old woman. She obviously cared a lot for Nicholas. "Then who is this woman, because I'm not built like that."

"It's your mother." Nicholas said as he wobbled into the room.

"Nicholas, you shouldn't be out of bed!" Abigail said rushing to his side.

"More easily said than done when you three were standing around outside my door talking." Nicholas grumbled as Abigail helped the old man to a chair.

"My… why do you have a painting of my mother in your study?" Asuna asked in awe as she looked up at the portrait.

"She was… a very special young woman." Nicholas said evasively.

Asuna stared hard at the old man. "You promised to tell me everything."

Nicholas' hard eyes returned her glare unflinchingly. "No, I did not. I promised to tell you why the painting was here. Beyond that, I have promised nothing."

Asuna was not to be daunted however. "You have a painting of a mother I've never seen and you expect me to be satisfied with just 'she was a very special young woman'?"

Nicholas seemed to wither before her eyes, pain seeping into his features as he turned his gaze aside. "No, I suppose not. Tell me child, what do you remember of your life before coming to Mahora?"

Asuna was taken aback by the sudden change in the old man's tone as well as the strange question. Thinking back on the past few weeks, Asuna balked at what she might reveal, but finally couldn't help but be forthright. "I've been having dreams. Strange dreams that almost seem like…"

"They did happen." Nicholas said seriously. "Those aren't dreams child. Those are memories that were locked away in your mind long ago. We were concerned that with your magic canceling ability the barrier might one day erode away."

"Who's 'we'?" The tall girl asked suspiciously.

"Konoemon and I." Nicholas said quietly.

Asuna began to feel sick at her stomach. "You mean that the two of you have known all along who I…"

"Yes, we've known all along." Nicholas confessed.

"I had a dream that my real name is…" Asuna started.

"Asuna Vesperina Theotanasia Enteofushia," Nicholas finished for her, "second daughter of Princess Kagura, and heir to the house of Enteofushia; also known as 'The Princess of Dusk'."

Asuna felt her legs wobble beneath her before she dropped to her knees in shock. "Please… who am I?" She pleaded. "I remember so little. All I can remember is Nagi, Takahata-sensei, and his master Gatou-san."

"Memories tied to strong emotional bonds, you would naturally remember them first." Nicholas explained.

"Then why don't I remember my mother?" The young woman demanded.

"We applied our strongest magic; hoping to not just lock away the memories but to eradicate them completely in case the day might come in which you began to remember." Nicholas said sullenly.

"How DARE you!" Asuna roared. "You took from me part of who I was! No matter how painful, did you think it would be better if I forgot someone I loved altogether?"

The force of Asuna's voice seemed to slam into Nicholas like fists as the old man seemed to bend lower with the weight of each word. Asuna stopped short as she stood and leaned over the desk to see the old man behind it on the verge of tears. "Please child. Forgive me. There is not a day that goes by that I do not relive that horror in my own dreams."

"In my dream Gatou-san said that I watched someone die before my eyes." Asuna said slowly.

"There were two people there that day when your mother died. I was there with you and I watched her die at your side. Child there are memories which I would spare you the torment of having. I would have sponged away those dark images from my own mind if I had the power, but I felt that someone should remember… her." Nicholas said as tears finally fell from his eyes.

Asuna instinctively reached out to the old man, but Abigail's hand stopped her. "That's enough child."

"But Nana!" Asuna said plaintively until she realized what she'd just said. "I just…"

"Yes child, I was your nursemaid too. I came to the castle here with you when you were small. I helped your mother raise you. When we fled the home country, a few of your family's retainers stayed with us. Gatou was your mother's bodyguard, and his apprentice, Takamichi was to be yours." Abigail said seriously.

Overwhelmed, Asuna began to stagger back from the old woman in confusion. "Takahata-sensei gave me these bells."

"They were your mother's Asuna. She wanted you to have them. I gave them to Takamichi to give to you." Nicholas said sadly.

"They were the only thing he ever gave me." Asuna said holding her head to try to keep her sanity in as her world crumbled around her. "Is that why he rejected me?"

"I had heard that you had expressed your feelings for him." Nicholas said sympathetically. "I can only assume that he still feels guilt for feeling that he failed your family, even though he has brought nothing but honor to his post in all these years as your guardian."

"He has always been there, watching over me. When I had no one else, he was there. I felt all alone in the world, but there was always him." Asuna said as her tears fell freely to the floor.

"You aren't alone anymore Asuna." Negi said suddenly to her side. She had forgotten his presence in the room as her world had shattered.

Asuna turned quickly to Nicholas. "If you will not let me remember, then tell me! Do I have any other family? You said I was the second daughter, who was the first?"

"I was." Nekane said stepping into the room.

"You!" Asuna said in amazement as she turned to face the woman as she walked in.

Nekane nodded with tears flowing from her eyes. "I wasn't there when mother died. After her death, Negi's uncle took us in and cared for us."

"But I don't remember any of this!" Asuna shouted.

"She wasn't referring to you." Nicholas said finally. "Sit child and I will tell you this much at least. Nagi fled the magic country with your mother, Nekane, you, Abigail, Takamichi, and Gatou. It was not safe for you, and the enemies of your family were in hot pursuit. They came here to take the two of you away. They desired your power and to end the line of your house forever. In the days that followed, Nagi… fell in love. He finally met the person who could tame his wild heart, your mother. She bridged the gaping rift that had existed between me and my youngest son nearly his entire life. She brought a light into this musty old castle that had been dark for decades and for the first time in ages we felt like a family again. When she became pregnant…"

"She what…" Asuna said suddenly looking around as everyone turned to Negi. Asuna's eyes flew open wide as she looked down at the boy mage stunned. His 'cousin' whom he called 'sister', the headmaster having absolutely no problem allowing him to stay in a room with girls, his relationship with Takahata-sensei, all of it began to collapse into place just as Asuna collapsed to the floor.

Negi was immediately by her side. "Grandfather, do you mean…"

"Nagi is not your father Asuna, but you and Negi _do_ share the same mother. He is your brother." Nicholas said warmly as if part of the weight of his guilt had been lifted.

Asuna looked at Negi as the boy mage turned to her in shock as well. "I have a brother." Asuna said dumbly as she suddenly found herself reaching out to embrace the boy. Negi returned her hug with fervor and Nekane wrapped her arms around them both as well.

"Finally, we're back together again." Nekane said warmly. "We haven't been together since the day mother died."

"You have no idea, how often I have wanted to call you home." Nicholas said sadly. "How much I wanted to tell you how much your mother had meant to me. She brought the two of you here and I was proud to claim you as adopted grandchildren. I could not however, for your own safety. If the demons that had sought your life ever knew you had left Mahora, they would have rallied against the castle and attacked it. Even now, you should not tarry here many more days lest they discover you are here and trace you back to the academy where you have been hidden. I would not wish an attack similar to what happened at the village."

"You mean the monsters that attacked my village were looking for Asuna?" Negi asked in shock.

"They were looking for all of you." Nicholas said sternly. "It is not safe for the three of you until you have become powerful enough to face these demons on your own."

"I have already faced one of them." Negi said darkly.

"What?!" Nicholas roared, standing from his desk.

Negi flinched against his grandfather's sudden rage. Asuna tightened her embrace on her newfound brother. "His name was Graf Wilhelm Josef Von Herrmann; he attacked us at the academy." Negi said, a little shaken.

Nicholas' eyes went wide. "Did he see your sister, THINK boy?!"

"Yes, he took me captive and even used my magic canceling ability against Negi." Asuna confessed. "But Negi defeated him, he can't hurt us anymore."

Nicholas turned and purposefully strode over to a window opening it to look out over the castle grounds. "This is bad. Have the two of you left Mahora academy since that time?"

"No, grandfather, just a short trip to an island not far away." Negi confessed.

Nicholas scanned the skies outside the castle. "Then it is possible that you were followed here from the beginning. I was a FOOL to go along with Konoemon's crazy idea! You should have stayed at Mahora. The faculty there could have protected you."

"Grandfather…" Negi started.

"There." Nicholas said as he watched the skies. "Invisible, unless you know what you're looking for. We are all in grave danger. Negi, get your class to the lower levels. Tell them anything, tell them it is a safety drill, I don't care, just get them to safety."

"What is it Nicholas?" Abigail asked in apprehension.

"We're under attack." The old man said simply as the first fireball slammed into the walls outside.

**A/N: And so the battle begins…**


	14. Defending

**A/N: Running a bit late on this update, I had to work tonight. Still, I hope you guys find my feeble efforts entertaining. As usual, I don't own Negima.**

**Chapter 14) Defending**

"What do we do grandfather?" Negi asked in alarm as another volley slammed into the walls outside. In the distance, Nicholas could see tall figures towering over the trees headed towards the castle.

"Do as I told you boy. Get to the lower levels with your class. Abigail, contact the Magic Knights. Let them know what's happening. I'm going to need reinforcements as soon as they can get here." Nicholas ordered as he headed for the door.

"We're coming with you." Asuna said resolutely.

"You will do no such thing, get to the lower levels and let the adults handle this child. I'll not repeat the past." Nicholas barked his anger blunted by apprehension for his grandchildren; adopted and otherwise.

"No." Asuna said firmly. "You said it yourself, they're here for us. We are going to have to face them eventually; it might as well be here."

"Asuna's right grandfather." Nekane said standing next to her sister. "Negi and Asuna have trained hard. I've trained hard. It's time we faced the danger for ourselves."

"We're not letting you face this alone." Negi said standing with his sisters.

For a brief instant, Nicholas felt a swell of pride for the children, willing to face the dangers to come. However his own harsh life experiences dampened his emotions as he remembered all the youth he'd seen wasted on countless battlefields. The vision of their mangled bodies lying bleeding and broken in the mud made his blood run cold.

"The first priority is the girls. Negi, you know this to be true. Get them lower into the castle. I'm going to go raise the shields for the castle so the demons won't be able to enter. We'll all be safe until help arrives. This isn't the time or the place to test your skills; this isn't a training exercise where your skill keeps you. This is war, where happenstance can fell the mightiest of warriors despite decades of training. Trust me, I will join you soon." Nicholas said fervently as the volleys crashed closer outside. "Now go."

Nicholas didn't wait for his orders to be carried out. The children knew their duty and would see to the safety of the other girls. Right now he had to get the shields up or things were going to get messy.

Nicholas ran through the corridors of his castle, regretting the teleportation dampening field he'd installed. His tired old legs groaned from the workout, but he pressed on until he reached the armory where the controls for the magic shields were kept.

Nicholas entered the armory and turned on the light to feel his heart sink clear to his stomach. Before him the controls lay about smashed, rendering the castles' defense shields inoperable. Nicholas felt his hopes shatter and join the wreckage on the floor of the armory.

"Is something wrong, _master_?" Galin said stepping into the armory from the hall.

"Galin, thank goodness. I need you to get below and help get the girls to the lower levels before the demons breach the castle." Nicholas said looking around the armory for his equipment.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, _master_." Galin's low malevolent voice said behind Nicholas.

Nicholas turned just as massive claw raked his chest and sent him reeling into the hallway. Black spots danced before Nicholas' eyes as he gasped for air and struggled to stand as another claw raked his chest, sending him spinning to the ground again.

Nicholas looked down at the ragged slashes across his chest and then looked up at his familiar as his twisted form began to shift further into a wicked amalgam of man and beast. "You have _no idea_ how long I've dreamed of doing that."

"What is the meaning of this, Galin?" Nicholas said pushing himself away along the floor as the cat-thing advanced.

The thing which was Galin advanced slowly, enjoying the fear his prey felt at his slow approach. "It really is quite amusing, _master_, the irony of it all. You were so terrified of taking a Ministra you set yourself up."

Nicholas reached out with his magic to undo his transformation spell. He wasn't surprised when it didn't work. He stalled, looking around for options. Thankfully, most villains were addicts when it came to rhetorical gloating. "How so?"

"It's ironic; you feared losing someone so much you drove everyone away. And now, you are all alone, betrayed by the one companion you thought could never hurt you." Galin said mockingly as he inched closer.

Anger burned more deeply in Nicholas' chest than the scars across his chest. "So, you betrayed me and my family to demons for what? You think they will be better masters than I was?"

"Silence old fool, I am the master now. They granted me power. I'm one of them now, made demon for this day so I could be here to watch you in your final hours and have the privilege of being the one to end your long life." Galin said as he prepared to pounce.

Nicholas gulped involuntarily. He was out of options. With Galin's speed, even an unincanted spell would be too slow. All Nicholas' magical weapons were still in the armory and he had no one around to stop his betrayer. Nicholas looked up as Galin pounced, his death coming for him.

The crack of the gun being fired was all Nicholas could hear for what seemed like several seconds. One moment, Galin was airborne ready to end his life, the next he lay in a heap with his head blown asunder from a rifle shot at close range.

Nicholas rolled over to see Mana walking nonchalantly up the hallway, slinging her rifle back over her shoulder. Nicholas fumbled dumbly for something to say. "How did you ever get that thing on the plane?"

"Magical illusion, it looks like a guitar to the security cameras." Mana explained in her usual monotone.

Nicholas nodded as the young woman helped him to stand. "Thank you child, it appears that I owe Negi my thanks for sending you up here instead of getting you to the lower levels like I told him."

"Actually, Nodoka sent me. She got worried about you and used her book to see what was going on up here." Mana explained as she followed Nicholas into the armory.

Nicholas stopped to look at the dark skinned girl seriously. He merely grunted and turned back to his labor. "The shields have been smashed. We're unprotected. You get down to the lower levels and barricade yourself in with the other children and I'll hold them off for as long as I can. Hopefully I can keep them busy until help arrives."

"That's not going to work and you know it." Mana stated flatly.

"THEN WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU HAVE ME DO?" Nicholas roared. Several seconds ticked by as Mana regarded him coldly while he managed to regain his composure. "Should I send children into battle against demons that will delight in ripping their innocence from them and then torture them in the infernal pits of hell for all eternity?!"

"I think you seriously underestimate him." Mana said with a soft smile.

Nicholas looked at the girl in shock for a moment. "Are you actually smiling?"

Mana nodded with another brief flicker across her lips. "I've been finding that it's easier to do now. The power of the World Tree hasn't helped that much so far. I think Negi might have helped it a little. He has a strange power over us, that one."

"I never would have though you to be capable of smiling again after the Severing took you." Nicholas said sadly.

"I lived, and now I'm actually starting to feel again. I'm even thinking of getting into another relationship with someone I know at school. If these past few years have taught me anything, it's that loving and losing is indeed better than never loving at all. Your memories will always be there, and there will always be the hope of finding someone else." Mana said sagely.

"Sometimes." Nicholas said cryptically. "I'm not winning this one, am I?"

"Probably not, Negi's already gathering the others." Mana admitted.

"Then I'd better give him the best chance I can." Nicholas said as he finished ransacking the armory for the items he'd hoped he'd never need again. "Here child, you better take this."

"What is it?" Mana asked as the old man handed her a rune-etched rifle.

"It was supposed to be your wedding present one day. I'm… sure he would have wanted you to have it anyway." Nicholas said quietly.

Mana bowed as she accepted the weapon. The only trace of emotion she showed was the slight tremble to her hands as she took the weapon. Nicholas nodded and then stepped out into the hall to head down to the gates. Mana followed him out and the two stopped short at the door, looking back and forth down the hall.

Galin was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

"It's not like I _chose_ the bloody thing, Kotaro!" Yue said ducking as another tremor dislodged a stone that skimmed past her head.

"All I'm saying is WHY can't I get a different artifact? I don't want a more powerful one, just one that isn't as degrading." The dog demon complained as he looked at his card dubiously.

"Some people actually wear those things thinking that it makes them look tough." Nodoka offered as she ran alongside the other two towards the lowest levels of the castle.

"_THOSE_ people aren't really dog demons now are they?!" Kotaro griped as he smashed a stone that threatened to fall on Yue.

Yue sighed. She'd finally gone and taken a partner, and it was Kotaro of all people. It wasn't her fault that the magical spirits in charge of dispensing magical items had a sense of humor. Honestly if Kotaro would stop being such a baby about it, they might actually be able to find out what it could do.

"Well, I think it looks cute." Nodoka said sweetly, as she jumped over a pile of fallen rock.

"CUTE?!" Kotaro roared holing up his pactio card. "What could you possibly find CUTE about a DOG COLLAR!"

"Well, the spikes do make it look a bit more menacing." Nodoka offered apologetically.

"Well, they are a nice touch, but… Hey, don't go trying to make this seem reasonable. No self respecting dog demon would be caught DEAD wearing this thing." Kotaro fussed as he quickly blocked a few more bits of debris from hitting the two girls.

"Could we please stop using the word 'dead' please? It's conjuring up too many unpleasant mental images." Yue scolded her partner.

The three finally came skidding to a halt as they reached an intersection to find Chisame. "Is that everybody?" Chisame asked.

"Yeah, Ku Fei and Kaede headed up to fight. We're on our way up too. You might want to go down and make sure the girls are safe and keep them out of trouble." Yue relayed to the resident hacker. "Your hacking skills won't do you much good in this."

"It doesn't look like there's a decent combatant among you alright." Someone agreed from behind the three of them.

Yue turned to look back down the corridor the way they had come. Behind them Galin sauntered up looking as malevolent now as he ever had. Any sexy connotations to his sinuous movements had been lost as his body had taken on a demonic almost were-cat like form. Saliva dripped from his fangs to sizzle as it dripped onto the cold stone floor of the labyrinth. "Give me the librarian, I need a hostage."

"You girls get out of here. I'll take care of this." Chisame said seriously.

"NO WAY!" Nodoka shouted at the hacker who looked like she was seriously about to fight the monster. Haruna had been bested by this thing and now Chisame wanted a turn?

Yue started to disagree as well when Kotaro interrupted her. "You think you can handle him?"

Yue stood there in dumbfounded amazement as Kotaro exchanged a hard glance with Chisame who nodded. He then turned to Yue. "We need to get up top as quickly as we can. If those demons breach the castle there's going to be a lot worse things to deal with than him."

Yue started to argue, but finally had to agree. For Kotaro to set aside his own repulsion for Galin, it must be critical. The Baka Leader then turned to Chisame. "If you think you can handle him, I need a favor…"

Galin growled in frustration as his targets bolted off down the corridor, with the one girl who stayed behind looking at him coldly. He didn't have time to lose, but a quick diversion could be made up for later.

"So, the pretty little schoolgirl wants to see what it's like to be a fighter, or did you WANT me to rape you?" Galin said as he slinked closer.

"Oh, I don't intend to fight you, I'm just going to make sure you don't bother my fr-r-r… my com-m-m… my asso-o-o…" The young hacker stuttered.

"Scared?" Galin asked, a bit taken aback by the girl's reaction.

"It's just hard calling them that okay?" The young woman yelled back at him as she pulled out her wand to face him.

"My, what a pretty wand, just wait till I show you mine." The demon cat sneered.

"Please hairball, like I'd ever give you the chance. I've met too many guys like you in chat rooms." Chisame said as she flicked her wand at the cat. "Nihil Nullum Zephirum, Spiritus Magnum Unum, Spiritus Electronici Nantur Super Aquas…"

Galin growled and charged forward to catch the girl before she could complete the spell; too late he reached her as he heard her complete the incantation. "Ego Electrium Regno."

Light flashed all around the demon as he reached out trying to grab the girl. When the light cleared, the hall was much as it had been before. He looked up mischievously at the young woman to find her a bit further down the hallway. "It looks like you missed my pet."

"Hardly." Chisame snorted. "I've pulled your mind into a cyber world. Your body has collapsed and is on the outside."

Galin couldn't help the grin that spread across his face. "That's fine, screwing with little girls' minds is almost as much fun as screwing… are you paying attention to me?"

"No, to be honest, I'm ignoring you much like the other guys I mentioned that I meet in the chat rooms. Attention seems to make you even more driven to annoy me, even when it's negative. Now if you'll excuse me, I have something to work on as a favor to Yue." Chisame said turning to a screen that suddenly appeared in the wall in front of her.

Galin spat in disgust and decided to make the upstart little girl's punishment that much more severe when something tapped him on the shoulder. The cat demon turned around to find a small mouse hovering in front of his face. "Excuse me, my name is Daiko, my brothers and I have been ordered to deal with you by Chiu-sama."

Galin looked around at the seven little floating mice that had surrounded him. "Let me get this straight, she honestly thinks that seven little _mice_ are going to keep a _cat_ demon busy?"

Daiko nodded with a grin. "Well, this _is_ our world."

Galin began to look about nervously as the seven mice began to expand, powerful muscles rippling beneath their fur as they began growing into monstrous rat-like entities that only a powerful hacker and computer genius could possibly control… much like corporate databases. For the first time, Galin began to worry.

"Hey Kincha."

"Yeah, Shirataki?" Kincha replied back in a guttural and distinctly malevolent sounding voice.

"What exactly did Chiu-sama ask us to do?"

"She said 'There's more than one way to skin a cat. Find them all.'" Kincha reported as he and the other seven beasts began to chuckle. Galin gulped and looked around unsuccessfully for an escape. _Oh bugger…

* * *

_

"Master, I am getting an incoming message from Chisame-san." Chachamaru reported dutifully.

"I'm a little busy at the moment!" Eva shouted as her ice shards speared through a pair of demons that made the completely moronic move of jumping towards her. The battle had already ensued at the gates as packs of lesser imps and devils charged mindlessly forward to test the castle's defenses. Eva had arrived to find Setsuna and Konoka preparing to face the horde alone like a couple of mice ready to face a hungry pack of lions. Granted one of the mice had wings and some rather sharp teeth, but still…

"Chisame reports that Galin has been subjugated using her artifact. She can only stop him though; she isn't able to kill him." Chachamaru said as her forearm blades sent a couple of imps flying into pieces and back to hell where they belonged.

"Go kill the wretch then. Then hurl the body to the demons. I want you to stay and protect the other girls while you're there. Between the two of you, you should be able to handle anything that comes along that gets past us. I'll stay here and make sure Setsuna and Konoka don't get themselves killed." Evangeline ordered as a wave of her hands brought forth a freezing mist of vapor and darkness to freeze several demons in an icy, suffocating prison.

"Yes, master." Chachamaru said dispassionately and turned to go and do as she'd been instructed.

"Thank you Eva-chan." Konoka said as she ducked the flying body parts of the demons that tried to get near her. Setsuna's sword swiftly teaching the erring fiends more respect for her Ojou-sama.

"Don't call me Eva-chan!" The vampire snorted as she sent a couple of large incubi back to their dark master.

"Sorry Eva-chan. Thank you for helping." Konoka continued.

Eva merely laughed. "Are you kidding? If I let anything happen to you, your grandfather will see to it that being unable to die would be a most unfortunate circumstance to find oneself in when I get back to Mahora. He's going through a lot of trouble…"

"…and trees…" Setsuna added as her blade slid through the midsection of an advancing devil.

"…to make sure you and all the rest of the girls are safe. Besides, it's going to be fun telling Nicholas he owes me one for helping defend his castle. Which reminds me…" The Dark Evangel said as she snapped her fingers. Suddenly a great ball of ice fell from the sky, as the undying mage summoned her 'Hammer of the Ice God' to flatten several demons beneath its titanic weight along with a rather lovely little white gazebo covered in yellow roses with a quaint stone bench inside it. "I always thought that looked tacky. You girls try not to go too easy on the collateral damage."

"Ojou-sama, can you reach Negi-sensei with your pactio card?" Setsuna asked as she slashed another imp as it tried to get past her.

"I can't reach him, something's jamming telepathy." Konoka replied.

"Figures; and I would have to send my cell phone pack to help Chisame." Eva groused.

"Chachamaru is more than just a cell phone." Konoka scolded the vampire.

"I'll remember that the next time you want to use her as a printer." Eva shot back.

"I forgot my homework in my room that day okay?" The mage apprentice replied defensively.

Demons continued to pour from the forest surrounding the castle. Thus far they were weak enough to be handled in packs, but their power was steadily increasing. Eva noticed Ku Fei and Kaede join the fight, but still the fighters would only be able to handle a limited number of opponents at a time. Even with such limited demons, their numbers could easily overwhelm the girls if more came to the party.

Eva was startled as everything seemed to slow down for a moment as Eva looked around to see what was happening. Centuries has taught the vampire that contrary to popular belief, time was _not_ linear. It was roughly linear, but tended to speed up or slow down depending on what was happening. In situations where everything seemed to happen at once, time slowed, and the watchful were able to take advantage of this to act.

Feeling time begin to move sluggishly, Eva turned to see the demon racing for Setsuna. The swordsman had buried her sword deep into the chest of an advancing imp only to find it stuck as a more powerful incubus moved in for the kill. Unaware of the approach of her impending demise, Setsuna tugged at her sword not realizing her death was imminent.

"SE-CHAN! NO!!!" Konoka screamed. Ku Fei and Kaede looked, but were too hard pressed to make it to the Shinmei-ryu fighter.

"DOWN!" Eva screamed as she dove for the girl as Yunagi ripped free of its victim. The breath left Eva as she collided with the bigger girl, carrying both of them to the ground. Eva could feel the energy as it ripped across her back. The blazing heat seared at her flesh, one of the few things that could actually harm her. Explosions echoed all around her filling her ears with the sound of rumbling death like an earthquake during an air strike.

A deathly calm settled over the battlefield. Eva struggled to rise to her hands and knees and noticed that Setsuna had a few burns across her arms as well. As time began to resume its natural course, Eva looked around to see demonic fluids oozing down nearly every surface around her from the remains of the demons that had detonated all around them.

"What did you do?" Ku Fei asked. Eva noticed she wasn't looking in her direction either. Eva looked up at the startled expression of Konoka as she stood there wide eyed with her hands thrown out in front of her.

"I don't know… That thing was going to hurt Se-chan, and I…" Konoka stuttered. All around the walls outside the castle, demons had exploded upon contact with the energy that had been unleashed by the apprentice.

Breathing hard, Eva struggled to sit. "That's it. When we get back to Mahora, you're going into combat training."

Konoka slumped down, nearly losing consciousness. "Do you think I could do that again?"

"Not with me around you won't." Eva scolded her. "You're a healer; as such your powers won't do much to people, but is extremely effective against demons… and undead. It would be too dangerous for you as well. The last thing you want to do is burn yourself out when you haven't mastered your powers yet."

"I'm afraid she's right Ojou-sama." Setsuna said meekly, as she looked over the burn marks from her own encounter with the energy Konoka had released. Eva was uneasy with the idea, but being a vampire Konoka might actually wield enough power to be able to… For the first time in centuries, Eva shivered a little at the thought that she might actually have found someone capable of putting her immortality to the test.

From the look on Setsuna's face it was apparent that the half-demon was more than a little frightened of the power she'd just witnessed. Her own demon blood would make her also susceptible to Konoka's magic. Not since the field trip to Kyoto had Konoka brought so much of her magic to bear. It reminded Eva than the Negi wasn't the ONLY prodigy at Mahora that demanded attention.

"We better get moving." Kaede said bringing the group back into focus with their surroundings. "More demons will be here shortly."

**A/N: Things should be pretty intense for the rest of the story as we begin to reach the end. Hopefully, I'll still be able to stick in a chuckle or two here and there. I'll be wandering around Ohayocon tomorrow (1/5/08), maybe I'll see you there!**


	15. Retaliating

**A/N: Sorry to say folks, but this story is winding down. Look for the conclusion in the next couple of chapters. I do not own Negima, but hopefully one day I'll own this boss that keeps kicking my butt on my video game...**

**Chapter 15) Retaliating**

"Fire Demon… DOWN!" Kotaro yelled as he threw Yue down to cover her as a lance of flames raced over their heads.

Kotaro barely rolled aside as the demon poured forth another torrent from its maw. Kotaro snapped into a run jerking Yue after him. All around, the forest was consumed in the conflagration of the demon spewing forth its fire and effluvium destroying anything in its path. "I'm beginning to think this might not have been the greatest of ideas." Nodoka shouted from the cover of some nearby rocks.

"Well, you _were_ the one who insisted that we find Negi-sensei." Yue retorted as she was once again swung around to keep from becoming a hot lunch for some demon by her agile new partner.

"Less talking, more dodging!" Kotaro huffed as he again rolled to avoid another deadly blast. Yue could barely keep track of their enemy's movements as it jumped around amongst the flames.

"Rastel Maskil Magister Jovis Tempestas Fulguriens!" Yue heard Negi shout over the din of battle as his magical wind ripped through the clearing in the forest extinguishing flames and sending demons flying.

"Are you three okay?" Negi asked as he landed.

"We're fine." Kotaro said in a huff. "We were only out here looking for you anyway, where's everybody else?"

"Asuna, Nekane, and I met up with grandfather. Here." Negi said, quickly handing an armload of magical items to Yue. "Magical telepathy is being jammed…"

"I know." Yue said as her cell phone went off. "That's why I told Chisame to use the cell phones to keep us all in contact."

Yue flipped open her phone, to see Chisame in the screen. "Yue, I found the information you asked for."

"Wonderful, could you display it for me?" Yue said as she read the text that got displayed across her phone. Without her book, Chisame looking up the information on the magical internet was the next best thing.

"By the way, Chachamaru is here helping me defend this stupid dungeon. She killed Galin. I thought you'd like to know." The super hacker told the philosopher.

"Well, at least somebody got to him." Yue sighed in disappointment. It was probably wrong of her to wish death on anyone, but for Galin she made an exception.

"Where's his body?" Kotaro asked eagerly.

"Chachamaru carried him up with her jet pack and threw him to the demons like Eva ordered her to. I can't say I'm disappointed, I don't like looking at corpses, even his." Chisame replied.

"We all need to get back to grandfather." Negi said seriously. "I'm afraid I can't carry all three of you on my staff."

"Just take Nodoka with you." Kotaro said smiling as he held up his pactio card. "Yue's my responsibility now."

Negi's face broke into a broad grin. "I'll see about getting you another book later then Yue-san. For now, take those magic weapons, they'll help you. Nice collar, by the way."

Kotaro's face quickly lost all traces of his former smile and Yue stepped in quickly to head off a quarrel. "Kotaro's right sensei, we can make it back together. We won't be able to help Nodoka though."

Finally, Negi nodded. "I'll take Nodoka-san back with me then, you two get to the north end of the castle. Grandfather is mustering us all there to launch a counter offensive."

Yue nodded somberly as Nodoka got onto Negi's staff and the two lifted off. Flying demons overhead took notice immediately and swooped in as Negi's magical arrows lanced out to strike them as he swept past carrying Nodoka to safety. She then signed off with Chisame.

Yue turned to find Kotaro sniffing the air. "Yue, I smell something."

"Sorry, I might have gotten a little scared there for a moment…"

"No, not that, I smell Galin." Kotaro announced.

"Why should we care? Chachamaru finished him." Yue said quizzically.

"You don't understand; Galin is half cat demon now. If he's gained their powers he won't be dead. He'll be able to resurrect himself up to nine times." Kotaro told her as he sniffed the air again. How he could smell anything through the carnage of the battlefield she'd never know.

"Why didn't you tell Negi?"

"I didn't think he'd like the idea of me tearing off after him alone. Negi and his grandfather should be able to turn things around without us, but Negi needs to be there." The dog demon explained. "So… you want to go?"

Yue thought for a moment before swishing the cloak around her shoulders and donning the magical hat which would grant her some measure of protection. She then hefted up her new staff. "Sure, how do I look?"

"Like a mage." Kotaro answered simply.

"Well, come on, I think I figured out what your artifact does."

"I am NOT wearing a collar." Her stubborn partner barked.

"You will when I tell you what it does…"

* * *

Negi rolled in mid-air as another volley of dark arrows raced through the air to knock him from the sky. "We're going to have to land and deal with whatever mage is shooting at us or we'll be picked off from the ground before we reach grandfather!" Negi called over his shoulder.

"I'm with you sensei." Nodoka said in encouragement.

Negi pulled his staff into a deep dive racing towards the ground and then pulling up to fly along inches above the ground as the dark arrows slammed into the turf behind him. Up ahead, a group of demons loomed into view around a robed figure.

"Gotcha!" Negi crowed as he flew in swiftly, chantless arrows flashing from his fists as he barreled into their midst.

Negi pulled up and he and Nodoka quickly dropped to the ground. Negi took up a defensive stance around Nodoka and extended a shield around her to protect her from magic and physical damage. He then set about fighting the demons. The stupid ones leaped first and died quickly leaving the more dangerous thinkers to circle, looking for an opening. Forgotten, Nodoka managed to slip clear of the fray as Negi worked through his martial arts stances. His hands worked back and forth, defending and then breaking the defense of his adversaries as he punched and parried his way through the melee towards his target.

Negi launched a quick barrage of arrows at the demonic mage as it erected a magical barrier to protect itself from the hail. Negi cursed under his breath. He couldn't get a good shot off at the mage while he was being attacked by all the cannon fodder assailing him at every turn.

Negi fought on trying to figure out a way to break free to take the mage out. It was then that he felt Nodoka's presence. Negi glanced over to see her out of the combat. Unnoticed, she'd slipped around the clearing to crouch down across from him, and behind the mage. Nodoka nodded in his direction and held her hands out toward the demon mage's back.

Negi smiled as he realized what she must be wanting. He didn't know what spells she might have gotten out of that mysterious book, but he had a pretty good idea what was about to happen. Negi broke clear of the demons long enough to hurl another spell at his opponent, "Novem Spiritus Lucis Coeuntes Sagitent Inimicum".

The demon grinned wickedly as it again raised its shield between itself and the boy mage. However, as Negi finished the spell, no effulgent arrows burst from his hands to devour his opponent. Instead, the demon mage stood there as the arrows slammed into him from behind from where Nodoka stood, her hands raised. Then it slowly slumped forward into a heap on the ground.

"Good work Nodoka!" Negi cried as he swung up onto his staff and took off at break-neck speed to catch the girl by the hand and pull her up onto the staff behind him as the demons turned to attack the 'harmless' girl they'd ignored. "That was brilliant! Where did you get those spells to channel my magic through yourself?"

"I got them out of your grandfather's library, but I'm not so sure how brilliant I am." Nodoka said cryptically.

"What do you mean?"

"Those demons should have been attacking me too, but it looked like you were their only target." Nodoka explained.

"Yeah, they've come for me and my family." Negi said darkly. Then he lightened his mood. "You sure you want to love someone like me?"

"With all my heart." Nodoka confirmed as she hugged him a little tighter.

A sudden weight slamming into the staff sent the two flying. Negi was thankful for the magical barrier around Nodoka as the two hit the ground. He then rolled to face the demon that they'd encountered. It was large and muscular, humanoid and wielding a wicked sword.

"Now you die, Springfield." The demons hissed as it charged.

Negi barely had time to parry the blade with his staff as he swung wide and then followed through with a kick to carry the demon past him. He could tell immediately that he was facing one of the more powerful demons in the horde attacking the castle, meaning that he was close to their leader.

Negi danced aside, trying to place himself between the demon and Nodoka. This thing was powerful, and wasn't going to be easy to defeat.

The demon charged with a large overhead swing that would shatter Negi's staff from the blow if met directly. Negi angled his staff to deflect the shot to the side and then spun to bring the staff around to the side of the demons head. All around demons gathered to watch the fight, none daring to interfere. Negi was thankful that they weren't swarming Nodoka at least. For her part, she remained close to Negi as he fought with the demon. She remained close enough to keep herself out of reach of the other gathering demons but was fortunately far enough back to keep Negi from tripping over her during the battle.

Negi whirled in, parrying with his staff to try a flurry of kicks to push his opponent back. He was unsuccessful though as the demon seemed to read his movements and moved to block him at every turn.

Negi heard Nodoka preparing a spell behind him and couldn't help but smile at the irony, that he as a mage would be defending his Ministra while she prepared a spell. Negi's staff jabbed for the demons face only to be knocked out of position as the demon crouched low for a thrust.

"Amor Piaculum Mea Corpis Nam Tui!" Nodoka shouted desperately as Negi's world seemed to slow as the demon's blade slipped unimpeded towards his chest. Negi watched in amazement as the demon's blade disappeared into a glaring flash of light that erupted from his heart. Realizing that his opponent was now out of position to defend himself; Negi brought his staff down upon the demon's skull. A satisfying crack resounded through the clearing, as Negi's staff was the last thing to cross the demon's mind.

Negi turned to grab Nodoka and pulled her close to his chest. "That was a great shield spell Nodoka-san. You'll have to teach it to me sometime."

Negi stopped suddenly as something registered in his young mind. The demons forgotten, Negi slowly pulled back from the damp warm feeling spreading across his chest. The boy mage looked down and then looked at the front of Nodoka's robe as a crimson stain spread across her white robe like a rose opening up its petals for the first time. "What did you do?"

Nodoka was smiling at him as her eyes began to close. "For once, I was able to save… you."

Negi dropped his staff to his side as brave little librarian sagged in his arms, her eyes closing to the light of day. "No… no, no… Nodoka-san you can't do this. You can't leave me like this Nodoka-san. Please, oh God no, not for me."

Nodoka didn't answer as her limp form draped in his arms, the arms of the boy she had loved enough to give her life for him. Negi's mind reeled from the realization she was gone, and he slowly began to lose control remembering all the moments that they'd shared. "No, this isn't fair Nodoka. You can't leave me like this. Not without… Not without one more chance… Not without one more chance to tell you… how much I love you!" Negi sobbed as he cradled his lost love in his arms. He rocked her back and forth as the demons cackled around him, but he didn't care. His pain and torment was their spectacle but he cared for nothing now that the one person who had ever openly loved him was gone forever, and all because of him.

The young wizard pulled back his head and howled in pain and frustration, the primal howl of a soul's purest anguish echoing down through the ages from the first man who when he had first known loss howled up at the unyielding heavens and hurled his impotent fury against the fate of all mortal men.

Negi trembled with pain and rage as the demons began to gather. "It hurts?" One of them said with malicious glee at the suffering of their quarry. Slowly Negi laid his guardian angel down on the soft grass of the forest floor before standing to face the demons, his eyes empty except for the fire of hatred.

Three demons dropped dead before they realized he'd moved.

* * *

"Where IS that boy?" Nicholas groused, his magical staff picking off enemies with deadly accuracy as he moved it around in broad arcs. The years might steal his power and strength, but they hadn't dulled his aim.

"We can't wait any longer grandfather." Nekane said at his side. "Negi can catch up later."

"Agreed." Nicholas said in concern. Nicholas turned to his 'army'; a handful of teenage girls, a half-demon, and a vampire. "It will have to be enough. Konoka, Evangeline, Nekane, Takane, Mei, Anya, get into a circle. The rest of you, gather around and keep any demons off of us."

Nicholas walked into the center of the circle, turning so he could look into the eyes of each of the girls in turn. "I'm about to attempt a mass summons. I need each of you to focus your power towards the inner part of the circle. I will then direct your energies into the proper weaves to summon my spirit familiars to this place in adequate numbers. Once we begin, there's no turning back. Once the demons realize what I'm attempting to do, they're going to be all over us."

All the girls nodded as they joined hands in preparation for the spell. The demons responded by doubling their efforts. Larger demons now joined the fray as Nicholas watched the girls beginning the concentrate. Nicholas watched with fascination as Mana led Ku Fei, Asuna, Setsuna, and Kaede in the fight against the demons. He wished the circumstances were different, but he had to admit that each of the girls was a splendid fighter in their own right.

The old patriarch felt the power begin to build. He never thought he'd be attempting this ritual, and having Negi gone was going to hurt, but hopefully with Konoka's comparable power level he could still manage. Nicholas opened himself to the power flooding through the circle. It's sweet intoxicating scent tempting him to linger in the casting. Nicholas shook himself a little, it had been too long since he'd felt the fire in his veins that went with casting truly powerful magic.

Nicholas began focusing his energy that unlike some of the younger mages didn't require his full attention and once again found his gaze straying to Asuna. The child deserved an explanation at least of what had happened. He owed her that much.

"Keep your focus old man; I don't want you nodding of in the middle of this." Evangeline snorted from her place in the circle.

"I know my profession vampire." Nicholas retorted without much fire.

Nicholas went back to watching Asuna fight the demons. She was graceful and deadly as she danced among the otherworldly attackers. Her powers as a magic canceller served her well, as did her training by the half demon girl Setsuna. Perhaps, just perhaps, they were ready.

_"Nana! Can I hold little brother?" Asuna said as she danced around the old nursemaid._

_"Maybe later my little one, your brother is sleeping right now." Abigail said as she entered the tower room where Nicholas kept his scrying pool._

_Nicholas looked up briefly from the pool to see his grandchildren. Beneath him he watched as Nagi unleashed his power against a new horde of enemies. "That fool has enough power to level a small city if he'd just learn the discipline he needs to control it properly."_

_"Oh, father, Nagi is a splendid mage just as he is." Kagura said, laying a hand on his._

_Nicholas smiled in spite of himself. Kagura reminded him so much of Celia in her gentle nature and her kindness. It really was true that those who ignored a shout would strain to hear a whisper. Nicholas could scream at Nagi all day long and the boy would ignore him, and she could merely whisper his name and he'd spin on his heels to give her his attention. How such a mousy girl could control the tornado which was his youngest son still bewildered him_

"_Abigail, you better get little Negi down to the nursery. Nekane will be heartbroken if she doesn't get the chance to feed him again." Kagura ordered gently._

"_Can I stay Mommy?" Asuna asked innocently. It did Nicholas good to see her in high spirits._

"_Sure, little one." Kagura promised._

"_I'll send Takamichi up to keep her out of trouble." Abigail promised with a chuckle as she carried the newborn out._

_The nursemaid left with the baby and Nicholas went back to watching the battle in his pool while Asuna skipped around, waiting for her 'bodyguard' to come collect her. Nicholas had to laugh. Give her enough time and the girl would have the Takahata boy wrapped around her little finger._

_In the pool, the battle was going poorly; Nagi had fallen back and was being overwhelmed. "Get out of there boy."_

"_Oh no… Father, look!" Kagura said pointing._

_Nagi's enemies had somehow managed to summon a powerful dragon to their aid. Nicholas watched in horror as Nagi continued to fight, unaware of its existence._

"_Amor Piaculum Mea Corpis Nam Tui!" Kagura shouted as the flames reached out to devour her husband._

_Nicholas looked up in horrid realization as he recognized the spell that Celia had used that fateful day his life had been destroyed. "NO!"_

_Flames roared to life within the young woman across the pool from Nicholas as the young Ministra took into herself that fiery death that had been meant for her husband. Little billows of flame like flowers erupted all over her body as the magic of the spell exchanged her body for his. Nicholas tried to look away when he heard Asuna scream and looked past Kagura to see the little girl watching in horror as her mother was consumed by fire._

"_Look away child!" Nicholas pleaded even though he knew it was useless as the little girl stood there transfixed as her mother screamed her last agonizing breath before crumbling to the floor in a charred heap._

_Nicholas moved around to grab the girl as she clung to the still smoldering remains of her mother. "Mommy! Mommy! Please get up Mommy!"_

_The old mage reached out to hold the child and pull her away to comfort her, but he felt the pain from her aura as he neared her. His life force had expired long ago, but he had existed for this long by feeding his life energy and body with his magic reserves. Now all that kept him alive was the constant flow of magic that dwindled more every day. To touch the child would mean his death, or at the very least the shortening of his life significantly._

"_Ojou-sama!" Takamichi shouted as he and Gatou charged into the room after hearing Kagura's scream._

_Asuna turned and buried her face into his chest as he knelt to hold her and sobbed._

"And I, one of the most powerful mages of my time, just stood by. Helpless to staunch the tears of one… little… girl." Nicholas whispered to himself bitterly.

"I said FOCUS old man!" Evangeline barked at him again.

Nicholas reached out with his mind and smote the spiteful vampire with the cruelest thing he could think of. To her merit she didn't lose her concentration, but she staggered for a moment and her eyes went wide from the shock as he hurled his own dark memories into her mind. "Now demon, you can share my own personal hell."

"I've seen worse." Eva shot back stubbornly.

Nicholas sighed as he lost the will to fight with his old nemesis any longer. "Just do me one favor."

Eva sneered, and started to retort but Nicholas brought her up short. "If something happens to me today… tell her, when you think she's ready."

Eva stared for a long moment at her old rival before nodding. "Now get back to business we're nearly ready."

Nicholas turned to see the girls had channeled nearly everything they could into the circle so he reached out and began creating the weaves of magic that would summon allies to their aid. Now these demons would see how a Magister Magi waged war. Around the circle the demons hurled themselves haphazardly against the fighters trying to somehow break through to stop what they knew was about to happen. "Spirits of the Earth! Keepers of the Eternal Embrace of Stone, Heed Your Servant As Was Agreed! Arise, Army of the Deep!"

Nothing happened for a moment as the magic reached deep into the earth, and the demons looked around in trepidation for what might be about to occur. Then as they slowly turned to resume their attack the ground began to rumble. Everywhere, stone hands broke free to grapple with the legs of the demons, pulling them down into the silent earth.

The girls fell back as the demons began to disappear around them and the ground began to come alive with golems arising to do their master's bidding. All around the castle, demons began to find themselves assailed on every hand as stone soldiers poured out of the angry earth to repel the invaders. There weren't nearly as many as Nicholas would have hoped for, but hopefully it would be enough to stall the demons long enough for help to arrive.

"Come on girls." Nicholas said, between ragged breaths as he staggered forward. He wasn't aware that someone had grabbed onto him to keep him from falling until he looked over to find Kaede under his arm. "Let's go find Negi and the others."

**A/N: Sorry to leave you guys at a cliff hanger like this, but next week IS the climax to the story. I hope everyone will like it. A.A. :)**


	16. Passing

**A/N: With things quickly drawing to a close, expect the last update next week or possibly the week after depending on whether I post the epilogue with the final chapter. As usual, I do not own Negima. I do however own my wife regularly at Monopoly.**

**Chapter 16) Passing**

The battle for Springfield castle raged all around, with demons trying to invade its walls only to be repelled by heavy enchantments, and an army of stone golems. Demons plummeted from the sky, either swooping low to attack a golem or falling to the precise aim from one of the other castle defenders, such as Mana or one of the mages. Near the outer rim of the forest surrounding the castle, another battle had begun. Demons that were more preoccupied with the castle suddenly found themselves ambushed from all around by the tortured spirits of Inugami, summoned back into the world of the living to ravage their way through the ranks of the demons to clear a path for their master.

"Jaculetur!" Yue cried holding her staff out with one hand as the other clung to Kotaro's collar. The beam leapt forth to sear a hole in the chest of one of the swooping demons. The staff carried far more magic than the ones used in the school festival and Yue was already thinking of where she was going to keep it when she got home, which might had varying degrees of certainty depending on the moments that were passing.

Yue never got the chance to see the demon strike the ground as Kotaro continued to course across the ground like a greyhound. Yue could feel him growling from the rather unsettling vibrations that she could feel across her body.

_You have to use your mind Kotaro._ Yue thought in her mind. _You can't speak in this form._

_Sorry._ Yue heard in her mind. _I'm still not used to doing things in my head._

Yue stifled a caustic comment as the enormous dog sailed through the air to collide with the chest of a rather large demon before taking a hunk out of its throat. Blood sprayed everywhere and Yue ducked to keep from being turned a deep crimson as her partner, and now mount, took off again. Kotaro's collar had unlocked his demonic power which had been sealed by the mages before he came to Mahora. Yue had known this when she'd activated the collar, but she had NO idea that it might actually amplify the demon blood within him.

Kotaro bounded across the landscape with his dog spirits in tow carving a path of devastation and destruction wherever he went. The demons were totally caught by surprise to find Yue's miniature army wreaking havoc on their rear… which in the case of the Inugami's preferred list of targets was also sometimes literal.

_We're getting closer._ Kotaro reported.

Yue merely nodded and pressed closer as Kotaro cleared a small ravine in a single bound heading toward his quarry. After a few moments, he slowed for a moment and the Inugami broke away to head back the way they had come.

_What are you doing?_ The novice sorceress demanded.

_We're getting close to Galin, and we've left the army behind us. I'm sending the Inugami back to help the others, I'm taking Galin personally. _Kotaro explained with fire practically burning in his thoughts.

Yue gulped at the power she had unleashed in the young half demon. She decided that she was going to give his powers her undivided attention for research when she returned to Mahora.

It wasn't long until Yue saw Galin, his haggard form racing through the wilderness to escape the demons as well as the golems. Yue imagined that if the attack on the castle failed, the cat would most likely be taking the blame for the failure.

Kotaro kept pace with the cat for a time before pulling ahead. The massive hound vaulted into the air, changing into his lycanthropic form in mid leap and carefully tucking Yue under one arm as he landed gracefully in the cat's path.

Yue found herself dumped quickly to the side as Galin skidded to a halt in front of the dog demon.

"Here kitty, kitty, kitty." Kotaro said menacingly as he began to slowly advance on the cat.

The guttural hiss from the cat beast was the only warning she had before Galin pounced directly for Yue. Yue brought up her staff, but Kotaro was faster. The dog boy seemed to disappear and reappear in midair clawing into the side of the cat as he was deflected off to the side.

Yue leveled her staff to try to get a shot at the cat demon, but couldn't fire for fear of hitting Kotaro. The two combatants disappeared into a flurry of blood, fur, and claws as Kotaro unleashed all the anger and aggression one species could hold for another.

Yue watched as the two rolled about more like beasts than trained fighters, swords and fighting styles having been abandoned for animalistic savagery. Galin's claws raked the young demon repeatedly as Kotaro's jaws bit and mauled his opponent seeking his vital areas even as his own claws rent his foe.

The young philosopher couldn't believe the damage that the two were visiting upon each other and vowed to herself that if she ever got out of this alive she was going to forget any silly notions she ever had about becoming a combat style mage. Then after watching them as the carnage continued she began to consider pacifism as a pretty good looking way of life.

Things weren't looking well for Kotaro until suddenly something began to happen to Galin. His body began to slow, and his fur began to recede. "NO! YOU PROMISED ME!"

Galin's nude human form was quickly slapped to the ground as Kotaro partially regained his human form. His clawed hand wrapped around the thin neck of the humanoid Galin. The former familiar's baleful glare spoke volumes as to the hatred and malevolence he held for the fighter on top of him.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Galin spat at the demon. "They've retaken my power, I'm helpless. What more could you ask for? Do it you pathetic mutt, you've always wanted to."

"Yue… look away." Kotaro commanded.

"No." Yue said tersely.

"I said look away woman! I don't want you to see me do this." Her partner argued.

The low guttural laugh from the fallen cat demon made Yue's blood run even colder. "What's wrong pup? You don't want the woman you love see you become a murderer? You can't do it, can you? It's different when your opponent is on his feet and you feel the rush of the demon's blood within your veins nearly beyond your control. Then your frail little human side can cower in your mind and safely blame the demon side for all the death. It different when you have to decide to kill isn't it, mongrel."

Yue said nothing as Kotaro growled at his nemesis and pressed him harder to the mossy earth beneath him. "Look away now Yue."

But Yue didn't move. She stood there unable to look away as Galin continued. "How long do you think you can keep up the charade puppy? How long will you be able to pretend to be her little lap dog, before your demon blood gets the better of you and the taste for blood or the desire to mate… URK!"

"I'LL…" Kotaro started before Yue placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. His body seemed to be on fire, his wounds dripping blood all over the ground around him.

"Let him go Kotaro." Yue ordered gently. "You don't have to do this."

"Yes I DO!" Kotaro insisted. "He's pure evil! He tried to rape you. He attacked you. He doesn't deserve to live!"

"You know you're only saying that to make yourself angry enough to kill him in cold blood." Yue accused the young half demon. "And I'm not going to try to deny any of it, but I don't want to see your heart tormented by the idea of killing him like this."

Yue released her slimes and they slipped to the ground from the small flask she had been carrying them in for emergencies. "You three, bind him."

Kotaro's form slowly returned to that of a ten-year old boy. Granted he was a half demon with dog ears and a tail, but he was still a ten year old boy. Galin spit at the two of them.

"You humans make me sick. You don't even have the strength to finish an opponent when you have the chance. This isn't over, witch. I'll hunt you and your little pet until the day I die, all because you haven't got the guts to do me in now." Galin sneered as the three slimes incased him in a watery bubble.

Yue lightly restrained Kotaro as his low growl rumbled in his young, muscular chest. "You're wrong Galin. You'll never be able to harm us again. You've lost your powers as a demon, I suspect your ability to regenerate as a cat demon, and most importantly you've lost your power over me. Whatever fear I ever had of you is gone. You're just a pitiful, pathetic creature hurling insults to get us to kill him because he's terrified of what else might happen to him if the demons catch up to him. Strength isn't the ability to kill; it's the ability to protect those we care about. Those we love."

Yue tangled her arm with Kotaro's and turned away from the hissing demon as she walked back toward the castle. She was glad that Galin couldn't see the blush on her cheeks as she leaned closer to Kotaro. She was equally glad that Kotaro could.

The two walked out of the clearing, and they never looked back. Yue would always remember that day, for various reasons. It wasn't a day she or Kotaro ever spoke of, but she knew he remembered it to. Yue never did know what compelled her to say it, but she decided before the end of that day that she was NOT going to spend any time dwelling on the answer. The words had merely come out as if they had a life of their own. "And you're wrong about something else Galin, it _is_ over." Yue called over her shoulder. "Purin, Ameko, Suramui… feed."

The gargled screams were all the two heard for several minutes as they headed back to join the battle.

* * *

The battle for Springfield castle raged all around, with demons trying to invade its walls only to be repelled by heavy enchantments, and an army of stone golems. Demons plummeted from the sky, either swooping low to attack a golem or falling to the precise aim from one of the other castle defenders, such as Mana or one of the mages. Near the innermost part of the battle, near the walls of the castle, a small hole opened up in the ranks of the demons. Driven backward by a hail of magical bolts and the powerful advance of Ministra Magi backed by the bone-crushing stone golems, the demons gave ground until Nicholas and the girls found themselves in the forest surrounding the castle, in search of Negi and Nodoka.

"They should be this way." Nicholas shouted over the cackle of demons as they were flung skyward due to the concussion from one of Eva's spells.

"I can sense them!" Nekane reported.

The small band of mages and fighters made their way through the thinning demons to an area that was strangely devoid of fighting. It didn't take them long to discover why. The roaring, howling, scream ahead of them shook all of them and Nicholas once again cursed his frail legs for being the reason they had come here so slowly.

As they approached the clearing, Nicholas saw his grandson. A hapless demon, already dead, lay at the feet of the young boy as he continued to rain blow after blow down upon the wretched corpse, sending a sickening splatter of blackened blood and ichors into the air with every arc. "DIE! DIE! DIIIIEEE!" Negi screamed.

All around the clearing, Negi's magic had lost control, as demons had been ripped apart and flung about like so much debris in the face of a hurricane gale. Negi's eyes blazed with madness as he continued his sickening hammering into his dead foe.

Nicholas didn't have to look at the girls to know the look that they had to have on their faces. The scene before him turned even his battle hardened stomach. The clearing was a vision of hell itself with the myriad demons lying about in pieces where they'd been rent asunder by either his grandson's magic, or in all likelihood his bare hands. Blood covered every surface except for the small circle at the center of the devastation where the still form of the Miyazaki girl lay, her beloved still defending her even now.

Nicholas could not decide what broke his heart more; the death of an innocent girl, or the death of his grandson's innocence.

The rest of the girls started to charge forward, but both Nicholas and Eva stopped them short. "No!" The old mage ordered. "It isn't safe to approach him yet."

"He's lost it." The older vampire reiterated. "He won't know friend from foe. Any of you girls studying magic look closely, and remember this. This is what the rage of mages can do."

Nicholas turned and approached his grandson carefully. Before he was very close at all, Negi seemed to blur as Nicholas suddenly found his youngest living relative attacking him in an instant. If it had not been for the enchantments that Nicholas still carried on his staff, he'd have died within seconds.

"You hated her too!" Negi screamed, hammering his staff down on his grandfather. Nicholas' staff moved of its own accord, blocking and breaking Negi's attack. Even with its magic, Nicholas couldn't help but feel the fear creeping into him. If Negi were to open up with all the martial arts he'd learned, even his staff wouldn't be enough to stop him.

In a dangerous move, Nicholas slammed his staff into Negi's and pushed down with all his might, bringing Negi's staff to his back and pinning it there as Nicholas wrapped his grandson into his arms in a desperate embrace.

"Let it go boy!" The old man ordered as he hugged the child closer. "Let it go before it poisons your soul."

Negi struggled within his grasp as the girls finally broke past Eva and streamed into the clearing. Most seemed unsure of who to run to first, finally while most of the fighters remained on guard, Konoka ran to Nodoka.

"Don't worry Nodoka-chan, I'm here!" Konoka cried miserably as she scooped up her friend.

It was Setsuna that went to her side. "Ojou-sama, we came too late. I'm sorry, your artifact won't work."

"Then I'll use my spells then!" Konoka cried as she shook off her protector. The novice healer's power roared setting the teeth on edge of every mage for a hundred miles.

Konoka powered her magic into the small form of her fallen friend until a slap crossed her cheeks from the vampire. "Stop it girl, or we'll be mourning your death. You'll burn yourself out if you try it without training, and you'll attract every powerful demon in the area right here."

"I can't just leave her like this!" Konoka sobbed.

"I'll help her." Nekane said gently. "I'll keep her from trying anything rash."

The undying mage looked down at the attempts of Konoka and Nekane as they tried to revive the limp form of the librarian, and merely shook her head sadly.

In his arms, Negi had finally begun to cease quaking with rage and had started trembling as the madness finally left him and he sobbed into Nicholas' robes. "Grandfather, I never even got tell her how much she meant to me. The demon was trying to run me through, and Nodoka was casting a spell, and there was this light, and I… and I…"

Pain ripped through Nicholas' own heart as he held his trembling grandson. "I know son; I know. The spell is called 'The Sacrifice of Angels', and it was written by your grandmother. She… used it to save me long ago, just as your mother used it to save your father."

"Such a spell would be far too powerful for this girl to cast." Eva noted coldly.

"Why did she…" Negi started.

"Because she loved you Negi. The spells in that book can't be cast by just any Ministra Magi. I allowed your mother access to the book thinking that only a permanent partner would be able to cast them, since others had tried to use your grandmother's spells and failed. It wasn't until too late that I discovered that the spells didn't rely entirely on magic or the bond between the mage and his partner, but instead gained their strength from the bond of love from the pure heart of one willing to give everything for someone else's sake. I wanted to spare you this pain, ever since the day I received this from the spirits I sent to watch you." Nicholas said pulling a photograph from his pocket.

It was the photograph of Negi being shot at during the festival and Nodoka pushing him out of the way before she was sent three hours into the future. "When I saw this picture I realized that this girl would have the power to cast those spells, so I set out to make sure that you would never take her as your partner. Now it seems I have failed you _and_ her, just as I have failed my family so much all these years."

Negi looked at the picture with his heart's pain written all across his face as Konoka had resorted to shaking Nodoka and begging her to awaken.

In the distance, Nicholas heard the heavy thud of something large treading through the forest just as he felt the tremors from the earth. A second thud brought the attention of the group's fighters just as a few of the leaves on the surrounding trees that had been miraculously spared fell to earth from the vibrations.

"Something's coming." Eva noted clinically.

"And from the sounds of it, it's probably the leader of these demons." Nicholas said slowly rising from his knees with Negi's help.

"Good, I want to kill this thing that's caused her to…" Negi started.

"No son, if you wanted to kill the person responsible for all this, you'd have to kill me. That girl's blood is on my hands just as surely as if I'd struck the blow myself. No, you need to get back to the castle. The Magic Knights will be arriving soon." Nicholas said tiredly. He knew that the golems would not be enough. Even now the magical constructs were beginning to be destroyed one by one as demons overwhelmed them.

"Grandfather, we can't just let them get away with this!" Negi shouted. Nicholas looked down and realized then what he had to do. Not for glory or for vengeance, but simply for the sake of that one small set of eyes looking back up at him.

Nicholas looked off in the direction of the advancing enemy. "Perhaps, just one last roar." The old man whispered.

"What? Grandfather, what did you say?" Negi insisted, pulling at his grandfather's robes.

Nicholas straightened himself and looked around at the only other person there he could really call an 'adult'. "Evangeline, get them out of here."

Eva turned to argue out of general principle until she looked into Nicholas' eyes. He knew the vampire, despite her callous demeanor, could nearly see through people's souls at times. He didn't want to think about what she was seeing in his at the moment. "Run!" Eva ordered with fear in her voice, grabbing the nearest members of their little group and hurtling them toward the castle.

"What? We can't run! What's going on?" Negi said appalled.

Setsuna gingerly picked up Nodoka and spread her wings. "I don't know, but if the undying mage is running, I'm not sticking around to find out what from."

Negi began to argue before a fist clubbed him over the head. Nicholas turned expecting to see Asuna, but found Nekane throwing the boy over her shoulder. "Just like when he was little, I swear."

The two sisters fled with the others toward safety as Nicholas slowly turned to face the approaching ranks of demons as they charged ahead in yipping packs as the vanguard of their leader.

"You have hunted my family for generations. No longer will I stand by as you visit pain upon the innocent and cower within my castle as you destroy the weak. Fighting you caused me to fear losing everything I held dear, and now it has been that fear that has nearly cost me everything. No longer will you terrorize me; no longer will you hunt me. Come demons, your death awaits you here. Ago Agere Egi Actum Propinquo Aeternus Spiritus Custos Anquitatis Armoare Mea Corporeus Pollentiae MAGUS BELLICUS ARCANIS DRACONIS!" Nicholas intoned as he spread his arms wide.

* * *

Negi awoke to the feeling of being jostled about as he was being carried by someone running. He slowly opened his eyes to see his sisters running behind the person carrying him. Negi looked down at the posterior of the girl carrying him and quickly realized it was Kaede.

The ninja jumped and dodged like a champion as demons sprouted from the forest at random intervals to give chase only to be beaten back by the formidable combat skills of Negi's partners.

"Duck!" Asuna screamed as she swung her sword through the air at the spot where Nekane's head had been only seconds before to send a small imp flying back into the bushes in two pieces.

"Where's grandfather?" Negi asked painfully as he squinted against the pain at the back of his skull. He quickly wiggled from the kunoichi's grip to run alongside everyone else.

"He's covering our escape. He told us to get to the castle." Nekane explained. "We've done all we can out here for now. Our magic reserves are starting to give out and the fighters are starting to tire. There's just too many of them. The Magic Knights will be here soon; we've done all we can."

"We can't just leave him out there alone!" Negi shouted, appalled at the idea of his grandfather meeting the same fate as… Negi forced the sight of Nodoka out of his mind. He couldn't afford to allow himself to mourn for her just yet. Negi had always promised himself that he would one day find those responsible for his village, now he swore anew that he would find the powers behind that attack and they would pay for their crimes.

"Can, and are!" Evangeline said as she pulled to a stop at a short rise in the terrain. "Someone's coming."

Everyone braced themselves for an attack as a demon dog burst from the undergrowth. Negi was halfway through an attack spell when he realized that Yue was riding the thing. "Is everyone alright?" The diminutive mage asked as she swung down from the beast that changed back into Kotaro, who quickly removed his collar.

"We've got casualties." Setsuna reported. "We were just falling back to the castle."

Yue said nothing as she looked at Nodoka wrapped in the cloak that Setsuna was tenderly carrying. Negi respected her control on her emotions, and envied her. "We're doing nothing of the sort! We have to go back for grandfather!"

"We'll be doing neither." Eva stated simply. "Has anyone else suddenly noticed the absence of enemies?"

Everyone looked around at the empty forest around them. "Where did they go?" Negi asked in trepidation. "They had nearly pushed back all of the golems grandfather summoned."

"They're after him now. Come up here and watch boy. I can sense that he's finished the spell. You're about to see why they call your grandfather 'The Black Dragon of Wales'." The undying vampire stated as she looked back over the forest and pointed from her position atop the small rise.

Negi could feel the massive build-up of magical energy. He ran to the top of the rise with everyone else to look back and see what was happening. Below them the forest spread out around the castle, Negi followed Eva's finger, but he could have located the spot blindfolded. The giant demon waded through the forest like tall grass making his way towards the castle. The thing was larger than the legendary ogre that they'd seen in Kyoto.

Slowly, through the trees, a huge shape rose like a black sun from the green clouds of the forest canopy. A huge serpentine head sprouted from the dark mass to bellow a howl of rage and anger at the afternoon sky.

"Grandfather?!" Negi asked in shock.

"Your grandfather is one of the most powerful transmutation experts in existence. This is his ultimate technique, the 'Arcane Dragon'. Pay attention class, you might learn something." Eva said with excitement as the titanic pair of combatants squared off against each other.

The great black dragon leaped low over the trees unfurling its wings that seemed to block the sun with their long shadow across the forest as the dragon charged forward toward the demon. The demon, carrying a massive sword larger than a tree braced itself for the impact and held its sword out lengthwise with two hands to block the charge of the monster lunging for it.

At the last moment the dragon dropped to the ground, tearing earth and trees alike with one great claw as it rolled and spun, bringing a wicked barbed tail around to smash into the side of the demon from the flank. The demon was knocked to the side as the dragon continued its spinning momentum to slice its staggered opponent with a claw before it's massive jaws closed over the demon's shoulder.

The scream of the demon split the air, and the small band of Negi's friends clapped their hands over their ears. All around the ebony dragon, smaller demons leaped at the massive combatant as they sacrificed their lives at the command of their leader. The dragon dug its claws into the largest demon even deeper before removing its fangs long enough to bathe the surrounding forest in flames.

The freakish horde of demonic minions found themselves plunged into the towering inferno of a man made hell as the forest erupted into flame all around. The blazing fire of the dragon did little however to the remaining stone soldiers as they marched relentlessly into their enemies clubbing and bashing anything that moved with methodical efficiency.

Within the fire, the demon and the dragon continued to wrestle about, sword and tail alike sweeping whole trees aside as the two pushed back and forth against each other. The demon finally managed to reach on of the dark dragon's wings and bit into it as hard as it could. The roar of pain from the sleek ancient wyrm reverberated across the forest as it turned its head to snap down upon the back of the demons neck.

The two foes rolled with each other across the countryside, squashing imps and golems alike as they clashed in their deadly dance. The dragon was the first to manage to break free and rise and reared back as the demon lunged forward. Flames scoured the demons head and back as it slammed into the great dragon Nicholas had become and toppled him backwards.

Nicholas however merely rolled, tossing his opponent over him and then coming up with his claws, ripping flesh from bowel to chin and sending blood arcing into the light of the daytime sun.

The demon responded with a wicked slice from its sword, cutting at the dragon's leg in an attempt to cripple the noble monster. The dragon moved only to have the demon bring its blade up unexpectedly into its side. The dragon roared in pain, but grabbed the blade in its talons. Then it dove in again with its massive maw biting deep into the neck of the demon. The demon struggled against the death grip that the dragon had on its neck and screamed again, but this time, there were pitiful few demons around to heed their master to attempt to dislodge his adversary.

The two massive combatants fell to the earth, with the dragon atop the demon, ripping mercilessly at his opponent's exposed neck until the demon ceased to move. All around, the magic which kept the demon army in this plane began to disperse as their leader fell and died. Demons began to wail and scream at their defeat, flailing as they were pulled back into the fiery embrace of the nether planes that spawned them.

No one spoke for many long moments before finally it was Asuna who broke the stunned silence of everyone who had witnessed the struggle. "We won!" She laughed. "Come on, we've got to find… grandfather."

Negi looked at his older sisters and nodded, but then he turned to Konoka. "Konoka-san, will you please take Nodoka back to the castle?"

Negi turned around to see Yue finally allow herself time to grieve as she wrapped her arms around Kotaro's neck and quietly began to sob into his bare chest. Kotaro looked profoundly sad as well as he wrapped her in his arms and tried to offer what comfort he could. "You go find your grandfather; the rest of us will take her back to the castle.

Negi nodded and hopped onto his staff with Nekane behind him. Asuna took off at a run ahead of them as Negi glided in beside her to keep pace. "How are you feeling?" Nekane's gentle voice asked from behind him as she hugged him close while they flew.

"It's strange, I lost the tournament at the festival back at school and I came away feeling like I won. Today, we won the battle, but I feel like I lost." Negi said numbly. All he could think about were the words 'I love you sensei' as they echoed in his mind. A few tears escaped from his eyes, and he didn't bother trying to stop them.

They flew until they reached the place where the forest was still burning. Negi used his magic to blow away the flames and they continued until they found Nicholas as he lay next to the dead demon's body.

"Grandfather!" The three siblings shouted as they gathered around the Springfield family patriarch.

Nicholas slowly opened his eyes, but did not move. He smiled when he saw the three of them approaching. Negi shivered as he looked down at the broken form of his grandfather. The wounds that the dragon had received were plainly visible on the old man's withered shape. Negi could never remember seeing him look so small.

"Grandfather, don't move, I'll heal you." Nekane ordered as she pulled out her wand.

Nicholas' hand was gentle as he reached up and lowered her hands from over him. "I'm afraid child; there is no healing these wounds I have."

"Nonsense grandfather, you're awake and alert, you'll be fine, just let me heal you and we'll take you to the castle." Nekane insisted.

"I'm afraid children, I won't be going back to the castle with you. I think I used too much of my magic, and now I can't seem to replenish myself." Nicholas said as he coughed a little. "It's strange, I've spent the past twenty years running from death, and now that it is upon me I feel almost… relieved."

"Don't talk like that grandfather!" Asuna said with tears in her eyes. "I found out only this morning I had a family, don't make me lose you in the same day."

"Alas child, I fear I have no say in the matter. Old age has finally caught up to me and I can feel myself fading. However, there is one wrong that I have yet to right. There is still one thing I must do." Nicholas said as he reached up and grabbed Asuna into an embrace.

"What are you doing!? You'll die if I touch you! My aura will…" Asuna spluttered.

"Your aura will only make my passing swift. I'm doing what I should have done ten years ago when you watched your mother die before your eyes and I was too much of a coward to hold you. Now, I do not fear what awaits me any longer. Negi, Asuna, Nekane, all three of you, take care of each other. Negi, I always hoped that someday you might take Asuna as your full partner. I wanted to spare you from the pain that I had to endure for all those years, and I'm sorry I failed you. Your father never forgave me for your grandmother's death, and I suspect he'll never forgive himself for the death of your mother. If you find him, tell him… I love you. I love all of you." Nicholas said with tears in his eyes as he gathered his family into his arms one last time. "And remember, I'll always be watching over you…"

Negi wasn't exactly sure what happened. His grandfather seemed to be there one moment, and the next he had disappeared into a small cloud of dust. The wind caught the little cloud, and Nicholas was gone from their arms forever. All three of them cried. Long after that, they just sat there holding each other as they mourned the loss of the ones they loved that day.

**A/N: One should always remember those that have passed which we care deeply for. I would encourage each of those who read this to do the same. I myself am sitting her as I write this looking at the portrait of my late grandmother. It's corny to say so I know, but the inscription on the portrait reads:**

**Remember me when flowers bloom, early in the spring.**

**Remember me on sunny days, in the fun that summer brings.**

**Remember me in the fall, as you walk through the leaves of gold.**

**And in the wintertime, remember me in the stories that are told.**

**But most of all remember each day, right from the start.**

**I will be forever near, for I live within your heart.**


	17. Remembering

**A/N: Well, here it is, the final chapter. This will be the last post for this story, as I am forgoing an epilogue seeing as I didn't include a prologue either. As usual, I do not own Negima in any form shape or fashion aside from the merchandise available in stores.**

**Chapter 17) Remembering**

Negi felt raw. It was the only way he could describe his emotions. He walked between Nekane and Asuna like a robot, and not even the emotional kind like Chachamaru. The boy mage had lost many things that day, and among them were his childish illusions that he would be able to continue his quest to find his father without any of the girls being put into real danger.

"Master Springfield!" A voice came from behind him as he trudged through the shattered gates of his family estate. "I say, Master Springfield."

Negi at first didn't respond. Usually people who called after 'Master Springfield' were referring to his grandfather. It wasn't until he remembered that the old man was gone that he realized that he was being addressed.

Negi turned to see three men striding resolutely towards him. They looked to be members of the Magic Knights.

"I'm afraid the battle is over." Negi said numbly.

"Ah yes, we know. We arrived just as Master Nicholas took form to fight their leader. It was a good thing too, the demons were about to breach the walls. They'd managed to break down the gates after all. When we arrived, we were just in time to save some girl who was standing here scribbling on a magical pad as fast as her hands could go creating magical constructs to fight them." The long white haired man who was apparently their leader reported.

"Thank you Dimichi-san, we're very grateful you were here to save Haruna." Nekane said gracefully.

"You know these guys… sis?" Asuna asked, using the word uncertainly.

"I'm sorry, where are my manners?" Dimichi replied crisply. "I am Aldo Dimichi, leader of the Magical Knights garrisoned here in Wales. These are my lieutenants, Helmut von Berge and Werner von Jenseits." He added indicating a rakish swordsman to his right, and a helmeted knight to his left respectively.

"It's been a while Lady Springfield." The swordsman, Helmut said with a thick German accent as he pulled a rose out from somewhere to bow deeply to the young woman. Somehow Negi could tell even through the helmet that Werner was rolling his eyes.

Negi started to lash out with a scathing comment when a quick rap from his sister's elbow brought him up short. Nekane stepped forward and took the proffered flower from the rogue's hands gratefully. "Too long, Berge-san."

Aldo merely shook his head returning his attention to Negi. "I was just wondering, is Master Nicholas…"

"He's dead, Dimichi-san. He died from his wounds after defeating the leader of the demon army." Negi said sadly.

"I see. I'm sorry we could not have come sooner to relive the siege." Aldo said somberly. "Master Springfield meant a great deal to all of us. He was our commander for many years."

"I know. I'm only beginning to realize how much he meant to me as well. Do you have any idea who might have done this?" The boy asked softly, afraid to know the answer.

Aldo seemed to slip into the pose of a man giving a report to his commander. "The demons here hail from the same region in the nether planes as those that attacked the young master's village several years ago. Information and observations gathered from this attack combined with previous intelligence have yielded some new insights. The demon leading this assault was a prince-class demon, which is impossible to be summoned by one mage alone. It would require no fewer than six mages of considerable power to manifest, much less control such a demon."

"So you mean I'm dealing with at least six powerful mages trying to kill me and my sisters?" Negi asked morosely.

"That would seem to be the case, sir." Helmut added seriously.

Negi considered the possibility. Even at his best, a mage alone could never hope to defeat six other mages. Unless they were incredibly weaker, they would overwhelm him. These mages would most likely have partners as well. He knew he could count on Nekane, Evangeline, and Anya, but that only made their number four against six. Negi considered the only other answer and shivered. Konoka and perhaps Yue could even the odds, but it would mean exposing them to danger and continuing to train them until they could do battle with other mages on their own.

Negi merely nodded slowly as this new burden weighed on his mind and turned to enter the castle. "Thank you commander."

Negi walked in silence thinking about the attack. He was trapped. He couldn't continue like this. If he kept on, he was going to get one of his students… He was going to get _another_ one of his students killed. Negi hadn't realized where he was headed until he ended up outside the small infirmary that his grandfather kept inside the castle. It had been a long time since it had been used, but now Abigail bustled about tending minor wounds that Konoka had been unable to heal since her magic had given out.

"Where is she?" Negi asked the girls assembled in the room. The hush that fell over them as he stood there was palpable.

"She's in there dear." Abigail said pointing at the door. "But I don't think it would be wise for you to go in right now."

"It doesn't matter anymore. Nothing matters anymore." Negi said as he walked over and opened the door. "I'd like to be left alone for a while."

No one said anything as Negi quietly closed the door behind him and turned to face his greatest fear. There, on the bed, lay Nodoka. She looked as if she were sleeping. Negi walked to the side of the bed and knelt down there. After a while he began to pray hoping that somehow she might hear him. "Forgive me Nodoka. There hasn't been one day that I've ever done right by you."

Negi thought back to that morning that had almost seemed like a lifetime ago. "I never told you Nodoka, but I was awake long before you were. I woke up with you next to me in the sleeping bag. I was curious why it was you instead on Asuna, and I rolled over to lay my head against your chest. You were so warm and soft, I wanted to stay like that all day. I'm sorry. I'm sorry I never told you how much you mean to me, how much I was thankful to you for helping me, or how much I really did fall in love with you."

Negi knelt there and cried for a long time. He didn't realize what he was doing until he had pulled back the sheet and crawled into the bed next to Nodoka. Once again he clung to her, needing more than anything to feel her near to him one last time. Negi laid his head against her shoulder and cuddled up next to her warmth.

Negi lay there for a moment until he realized that Nodoka was warm. Not just warm, she was almost feverish. Stunned, the boy mage laid his ear to the girl's chest. A very faint heartbeat met his jubilant hearing.

Negi couldn't believe what he was hearing. He jumped back from the girl as if slapped, afraid that somehow he was going to awaken to realize he'd only been dreaming about hearing the heartbeat. Trembling, the boy mage reached out and gingerly undid the buttons to Nodoka's blouse. Beneath he could still see the traces of the wound.

"NEGI! What are you doing?!" Abigail shouted from the door as she found him kneeling over the girl's body.

"Nana! Nodoka's alive! She's really alive! Please, you've got to get Konoka in here before it's too late!" Negi shouted excitedly.

Abigail merely shook her head and waved off the girls who came rushing to the doorway. She then gently closed it behind her. "Yes Negi, she's alive. We've already done everything we can for her. She's on her own now."

"What do you mean? How is this possible, the sword…" Negi rambled hysterically.

"I know, I heard. Nodoka used a spell that offers up her body in the place of yours. Any injury that would have harmed you affected her instead." Abigail said as she nodded and took a seat next to the bed.

"But, the sword was aimed for my heart. She collapsed in my arms, and I watched her die." Negi said incredulously.

"Yes, the sword was aimed at _your_ heart, not hers. Since you've opened her shirt up take a look at that wound she has on her torso." Nana urged the young man gently. Negi looked down to trace the scar that ran from just over her stomach to just under her ribcage. "Nodoka is taller than you are child. The stroke that would have skewered your heart missed hers. She's very lucky to be alive all the same. When she collapsed in your arms, it was because of blood loss I imagine."

"She's alive." Negi said with so much relief that he felt that if she were to awake and ask it of him he could lift the world on his shoulders for his little heroic librarian.

"No thanks to you."

Abigail's words struck the young boy to his core, bringing that same weight collapsing down and crushing him beneath it. Negi looked up at the grim face of his old governess in shock and apprehension. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that Nodoka nearly died and it would have been all your fault. Not because she said some spell, and took a stroke meant to take your life, but because you lost control and went ballistic when she needed you more than anything. Nodoka nearly died, not from the wound, but from being abandoned by you." Nana said harshly. "I watched the entire scene from the master's scrying pool. You were so caught up in your own grief and pain that you didn't even stop to check on her. If Konoka hadn't given her what healing she could when she did, then she _would_ be dead right now."

"I… I was overcome." Negi said miserably.

"You were stupid." Nana corrected. "You are just like your father; so wrapped up in your own little world with your own problems that you never look around you to see who else you might be impacting. When your mother died, did your father rush home to the arms of his adopted daughters, his grieving family, or his newborn son? No, he went off to be alone with his grief and self pity and abandoned the people that needed him to be strong and to be there. Negi, if you are going to chase after your fool of a father, I'm not going to stop you. I think the boy needs to meet up with you one day and explain himself to the son he abandoned and apologize for all the heartache he's caused everyone with his childish sulking. What I DON'T want to happen is for you to ignore everyone around you who loves you. Yes, sometimes they are going to be in danger, yes they might get hurt, but you are going to have to be strong and face it so that you will be able to keep control when the time comes so that you can actually help them when they need you instead of falling to pieces."

Negi bowed his head at the reprimand. "I guess I really do need to get stronger."

"Not the type of strength you're thinking of child." Nana said as she stood and walked over to lay her hands on his shoulders as he sat on the side of the bed. "The strength you need is the strength of the heart. Your grandfather, for all his power was weak. He never had the strength to get up off his knees when your grandmother died and he spent the rest of his life hollow and empty."

"I don't suppose you know where I can find a teacher for that kind of training do you?" Negi asked with a sad half hearted chuckle.

"You already have one." Abigail said nodding at Nodoka. "And you have several others who keep trying to teach you as well. Listen to them."

Abigail walked over to the door and opened it suddenly, causing Negi's partners to spill out onto the floor. "And speaking of listening, I assume you girls heard what we were talking about?"

Of all the girls, Yue was the only one who had managed to remain standing. "How did you know Nodoka was alive?"

"Child, when you get to be my age you start learning to recognize a corpse when you see one. I called the paramedics a few times on Nicholas when I caught him napping. After a while you learn to start looking closely before you start making the tea." Abigail said properly.

The girls all crowded into the room to see Nodoka. Negi sat there looking at his guardian angel for a few minutes more before he quietly excused himself from the room.

* * *

Nodoka looked like a ghost as she walked through the halls of the castle. She had awoken to find Yue dozing next to her bed with a heavy book in her lap. She had hoped to awaken to see Negi, but he was nowhere to be seen. Wearing only her linen night gown she glided across the floor in search of the boy. She had to know that he was alright. All she remembered was seeing the demon's sword headed for his chest and saying the words of the spell.

Something drew Nodoka to the balcony. She knew he would be there, she didn't know how, but she knew he would be there. She quietly walked out behind him where he sat on the rail looking out over what was left of the castle garden in the pale light of the full moon.

"I see your fever has broken." Negi said as she approached. She was certain he sounded as if he'd been crying.

"I didn't know I had a fever, how long have I been asleep?" Nodoka asked.

"Two days, we were beginning to worry about you." Negi said still staring out at the garden.

"So, I see we won the battle." Nodoka said cheerily. Something about Negi's tone put her on edge.

"Not really, I mean we defeated the demons, but sometimes you can win and still consider it a loss." Negi said somberly. "I thought I lost you."

Nodoka was touched by his sentiment and tenderly put her hands on his back. His body still trembled beneath her touch like a barely suppressed wail. She then moved her hands around his waist to hold him tighter. "You don't have to worry sensei. I'll be here for as long as you will let me stay by your side."

The librarian could feel his body tense in her grip. She didn't know what she had said, but apparently he had felt it differently than she had intended. "Nodoka, why did you do what you did?"

Nodoka suppressed her elation at him using her name so informally, as she realized how hurt he must be. She remembered Nicholas' words… 'If you do, he'll never forgive you'. "I wanted you to be able to find your father. I couldn't let you die before you had managed to reach your goal. I know how important your dreams are to you."

"And what about _your_ dreams?" Negi said almost angrily as he turned to face her. He turned around on the rail and Nodoka could see the fresh tears still damp on his cheeks in the dim light. Sitting on the rail he was nearly a head taller than she was. "What are _your_ goals, Nodoka? Why would you put all that you could ever hope to accomplish aside just for me?"

"I love you. I always have, and I always will." Nodoka said with tears brimming into her eyes. "My only goal is to be by your side and to help you find your father."

"And do _you_ have a dream?" Negi asked.

"I dream about hearing you tell me you love me too." Nodoka replied honestly. "There were times while I slept that I thought I could hear you, telling me that you loved me. Please, sensei… do you… do you forgive me?"

Negi looked at her in absolute shock. "Forgive? Forgive you for what?"

"Nicholas-sama said that if I ever used that spell that you would never forgive me. Please, sensei, tell me that you don't hate me." Nodoka said gently.

Negi wrapped her up in his arms and held her closely against the cool night breeze. "I could never hate you Nodoka, and there is nothing to forgive. I only hope that you can forgive me instead."

"Sensei, I…" Nodoka started.

"Please Nodoka, just let me finish. I nearly lost you, that's true, but I don't hold you accountable for that. I nearly lost you because I was stupid, and because I wasn't strong enough… in here." Negi said pointing to his heart. "I still have a lot of growing up to do, this summer has taught me that more than anything, and that's why I've made some very tough decisions."

"You've decided on your permanent partner?" Nodoka asked breathlessly.

Negi nodded somberly. "Yes, I've decided to be permanently bonded with Asuna…"

Nodoka's chest felt full of more pain than when the demon's sword had run her through. Negi started to continue, but Nodoka was already red in the face and embarrassed. Negi loved Asuna, and there was nothing she could do to change that. She started shaking her head and backing away.

"Then, I hope the two of you will…" Nodoka started before she turned to bolt. Her cheeks were burning and all she could think to do was get away before she embarrassed herself even more. But as she tried to run, she was held back by Negi who still had a hold of her arm.

"Please sensei, just let me go…" Nodoka sobbed.

"I can't." Negi said simply as a quick tug from his unnaturally strong arms brought the little librarian tumbling back into his arms. Nodoka gasped as Negi claimed her lips with his own. She was so shocked that she didn't resist as he kissed her and was even more shocked when he deepened the kiss into one of the most passionate adult kisses she'd ever even heard of, much less read about. It made the kiss he'd given Asuna at the festival seem tame by comparison.

Nodoka couldn't move. Asuna had nearly passed out from the kiss she'd gotten, and now Nodoka felt like she'd nearly died. Negi was a great kisser. She swayed on her feet for a few moments, confused as Negi was all that kept her standing. Finally, she slowly opened her eyes to look up at his face in the phosphorescent light of the moon. "Didn't I tell you to let me finish?"

"But… don't you love Asuna?" The confused young woman asked.

"Yes, I do… because she's my sister." Negi said with an impish smile.

"Then why?" Nodoka asked simply.

The look on Negi's face was pained. "Nodoka, I'm not strong enough to bear losing you again like I nearly did during the battle. I don't have the strength of heart that you have. Somehow, you manage to keep going no matter what the circumstances. For that I really envy you. I can't go on putting you in jeopardy, not for my sake. Asuna and I are linked together in danger. The trials that I must face she must face as well, so we might as well face them together. I'm going to dissolve the pactio bonds with all the other girls."

"So, you don't want me by your side?" Nodoka asked sadly.

"I didn't say that. I need you Nodoka. Your strength and your love means more to me than you will ever know. I know I'd never be able to find the words for it at any rate. Nodoka, I won't risk losing you like I did this time, but if you still wish to learn magic I will teach you. And, if you still dream about hearing me say it, then it is the least I could offer you for the dedication you've shown me. Nodoka, I love you. Will you stay by my side, not as my partner, but as my love?"

* * *

"Well, I guess they're an official couple now." Yue said sadly as she turned away from the balcony as she started to go back through the garden. Negi had chosen. She'd awakened to find Nodoka gone and had immediately set out to search for her. "Wouldn't you say so Kotaro?"

"How did you know I was here?" Kotaro griped as he stepped out of the shadows behind a bush. "I never made a sound."

"I've started noticing the signs for when you'd show up. Midnight garden, beautiful rose bushes, a radiant full moon, now all we need is mood music…" Yue started.

Above them, Nodoka started singing softly to her beloved sensei as the two new lovers held each other on the balcony above.

"…right on cue. Somehow, it just didn't seem like I'd be able to get back through this garden without you showing up." Yue said with a sardonic expression that she really didn't feel.

Kotaro gulped and looked like a scolded puppy. "Well Yue, when I went and didn't find you with Nodoka I started to worry. And, well, you know how I feel about you, so naturally I tend to be a little protective…"

Yue silenced the boy with kiss that stole the sound from the garden and his lips with amazing efficiency. She held him there for a moment before she broke the kiss with a smile and looked up into his startled face. "You talk too much."

The two of them shared a brief chuckle that seemed to fit the mood before Yue curled her arms around her partner's neck and they went back to kissing.

* * *

Nicholas' ghost wandered the hallways of the castle in a sour mood. The girls were getting ready to leave and he'd be back to watching the dust collect on his estate before it was over with. At least Sayo had been decent company, and it had taken everything he could muster to get the girl to keep quiet to his grandson about his spectral presence in the castle. Finally though, she had complied and Nicholas was assured his grandson wouldn't be trying to spend his time trying to free his 'tormented' spirit.

Nicholas floated through the corridors to the rooms occupied by the girls who had been, until recently, Negi's partners.

"Hey Yue, where are your pajamas?" Haruna was asking as they hurried about the room gathering their things.

"They're over there on the bed." Yue said offhandedly.

"These are yours? Where's your other set with the kittens on them?" Haruna said quizzically as she helped her friend.

"Those are new; I don't know where the other set got off to." Yue said quickly.

Nicholas supposed this was possibly true, since he had seen her stuffing the garments in the refuse bin she _technically_ wouldn't know where they were by now since the garbage had been collected the previous day.

"So this thing with Kotaro seems to be heating up is it?" Haruna accused the young philosopher.

"There is no 'thing' Haruna. Kotaro is my partner, and I am his mage. We are bound together for protection and survival." Yue replied piously.

"You don't really expect me to believe that do you?" Haruna said slyly as she snickered at her friend.

"Why not?"

Haruna merely picked up the new pajamas and held them up for Yue to look at. "Puppies?"

Nicholas merely chuckled as he floated over into the next room where Mana was just finishing her packing. She had a cell phone and was holding it up to her ear as she shouldered her new rifle. "Yes, uh, Serizawa-kun? Yeah, it's me Mana. I was just calling to let you know we're going to be getting back to the academy soon. And uh, I was wondering if when we got back if you'd be interested in dinner? No, I wasn't thinking of any place in particular, in fact I was wondering if you might like to come over. I… could cook something for us."

Nicholas could feel warmth spreading from the place where his heart used to be and smiled at the girl. It may have been his imagination, but he thought he caught the briefest wink in his direction.

Continuing on, Nicholas came into a room of absolute chaos. Girls were running in and out as they remembered things they'd bought, brought, sought, or caught that they wanted to carry back to Japan with them. In the middle of it all, Negi wandered like a forlorn little squirrel trying to direct a traffic jam of stampeding elephants.

"Now has anyone seen the twins? Oh yes, there you are, I'll just count you as ready… what do you mean you forgot something again? Well hurry up and get it." Negi said helplessly as the girls rushed around him like a torrent of confusion on the sea of mayhem. And there by his side following after him was the Miyazaki girl.

Nicholas regarded her for a few moments. She seemed to bring stability everywhere she went. Her gentle voice brought Negi's attention towards whatever girl he was looking for at the time and every time he seemed lost, she was there to point the way. She reminded him more of Celia than any person he'd ever met.

Apparently, he wasn't the only person to take a notice in the girl either. To the side of the room, the class rep Ayaka Yukihiro was watching and simmering.

"Asuna, what has been going on behind my back?" Ayaka shouted as she pulled her nemesis out of the tide of girls trying to get ready to leave.

"I swear I wasn't the one who put minnows in your luggage." Asuna vowed.

"I'm referring to _that_!" Ayaka said pointing at the pair of young lovers.

"Has anyone seen my glasses?" Negi shouted patting about on his jacket.

Nicholas watched in amusement as Nodoka pulled the case from her pocket and opened it. She then put his glasses on his nose for him. "Here you are Negi."

"Oh, thank you Nodoka." Negi replied as he went back to trying to restore order to the turmoil of his girls on an average day.

"When did THAT happen?" Ayaka demanded as she once again drew Nicholas' attention.

"Oh, a couple of days ago I think. Negi left his glasses in the library, and I imagine she's been carrying them since then." Asuna replied nonchalantly.

"No! I mean, when did they start talking to each other so informally? It's like they're… they're…" Ayaka said as tears started to well up in her eyes. "You can't tell me you're actually happy about this either!"

"Yes actually, it's a big help for me and Nekane. Negi can be a handful so one more person to help take care of him really helps lighten the load." Asuna said and then grinned broadly at her nemesis.

"You mean you're not upset that Nodoka is this close to him?" Ayaka pressed.

"No, it turns out that Negi is actually my little brother, so if Nodoka wants him she's welcome to try. If anything, it helps me out so that I can dump him in her lap occasionally to keep him out of trouble. You're not _jealous_ of her are you class rep?" Asuna said with a smug sneer that stopped short when she saw the expression on Ayaka's face.

"I would have thought that you seriously knew me better than that Asuna." Ayaka said with deep hurt as she ran from the room.

Nicholas raced after his granddaughter as she chased down her childhood nemesis. "Ayaka wait up! What's gotten into you? You've known all along that Nodoka was after Negi, why are you just _now_ getting upset?"

Ayaka sobbed and turned a hateful eye towards the Red Baka. "You know me better than that Asuna. While I might be overly affectionate toward sensei, you know I'd never be like that. If Negi-sensei was happy, it would make me happy too no matter what person he decided to be with."

"Then why all the water works?" Asuna insisted.

"You know my past stupid. I lost my little brother, and I've always looked at Negi like he was my own. Now I find that he has a big sister already, and it's _you_ of all people." Ayaka wept bitterly, not wanting to face her old rival.

"And they call ME a baka." Asuna said gently as she turned Ayaka around and placed her hands on her shoulder to look her square in the face. "Yes, Negi is my little brother Ayaka. Negi's grandfather brought us here so we would be able to finally find out. While we've been here, Nodoka and Negi have gotten a little closer. Okay, a LOT closer, but that still doesn't mean that there isn't a place for you in his life. Trust me; Negi's going to need all the big sisters he can get in the months ahead."

"You think so?" Ayaka asked, unsure of herself.

"Yeah, so cheer up, I think it might be time for me, you, and Negi to have a long talk when we get home." Asuna said wrapping her arms around her friend and walking her back towards the rest of the class.

Nicholas floated around vaguely listening to the other conversations as Ku Fei was telling Kaede about some guy in the Magic Knights she'd had to deck because he _prepositioned_ her, and Chisame whining about how slow her connection speed was now.

Nicholas floated up to the top of the walls to see off the bus as it loaded the last of its passengers for the trip to London and then back to Mahora. Abigail joined him on the wall, and waved down to the children. Nicholas smiled and waved himself even though they couldn't see him. Below, Eva looked up at him and he was sure that the tongue she stuck out was meant for him alone. Nicholas grimaced, and then since nobody was going to be seeing it he threw dignity to the wind and stuck his tongue back out at her. She smirked as the bus started away.

"Oh, it's always a trial when the children come to visit." Abigail sighed as she straightened the folds of her dress. "Would you like me to put some tea on master?"

"Actually Abby, I need you to go get some things from my desk. It has been a while, and I really do think we should do some traveling now." Nicholas said wrapping his arm around hers. "I think the kids can handle it from here."

**The End**

**A/N: I did not have the ending set in stone for this story until today. I wrote it this afternoon after seeing what the reactions were to the death of Nodoka. I believe most people wanted her to live, and for it to be a happy ending. I only had one person that thought letting her live would be a cop out, but I hope they can forgive me. I am after all a sucker for happy endings.**


End file.
